February and not a flake of snow. Interesting, huh? I said goodbye to my beloved muscle car this month and got a car with which I thought I would be able to play in the snow. No such luck! Living at work these days, I suppose it doesn’t matter, I wouldn’t have the time anyway. I found out some interesting medical news as well. Seems my heart condition now has a proper name: Dilated Cardiomyopathy. (I had to practice how to say it. And it flows out smoother the better you get at saying it. “Cardio-myah-pathy.” Now, say it fast. There you go.) Initial theories was my problem was contracted through a virus. But I just had a DNA test done, and the results are in: I was bequeathed this affliction from my parents. Seems we have this bizarre gene, something heinous enough to be concocted on the Imperial Star Destroyer. The genetic counselor explained congestive heart failure will get me. This is a dark gift that instills in me a new urgency to realize how important every minute truly is. As Nate Fisher said in Six Feet Under “We die to make life important, every moment count.” Oddly, I didn’t feel that day with the counselor as if I were sitting across from a gypsy fortuneteller talking about my Talbot curse. I felt the opposite. I don’t know. Relieved? I mean, how often do you learn how you’re going to go? And then there was this odd connection to my father and my grandfather, this mortality that now makes me feel very bonded to them.
M83 Fantasy on HI-RES FLAC: It’s amazing the number of “bands” these days that actually consist of one member. M83 is a one such example, taking its name from the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy that resides a mere 15 million light-years from us and discovered in 1752 at the Cape of Good Hope, you can visibly see this spectacular galaxy with a pair of binoculars. Stellar delights, notwithstanding, Anthony Gonzalez formed this band in 1999 with his friend, Nicolas Fromageau. Fromageau departed shortly after their second tour together. I picked this up while perusing new releases on HDTracks.com. After hearing a sampling of the songs it became an insta-buy for me, and I’ve had it on repeat since. When I’m not listening to it, I’m humming the music in my head at work. It’s not often an album grabs me like this. When it does, it becomes a completely immersive world to me. Throw a smidgeon of Arcade Fire in with a pinch of 80s pop and this is what M83 sounds like.
Batman Arkham Asyulum on PC: Still trudging along in this one. I put Harley Quinn behind bars and Poison Ivy is next! I do love games in which the environment becomes the main character, and this one is no exception. Taking place entirely at night at Arkham Asylum, the place, like I’ve said before really is reminiscent of a place where Halloween is eternal. I’m not sure, however, if the environment is the selling point, or Mark Hamill’s depiction of Joker. I’ve seen Batman’s death animations a hundred times yet I never skip them because Joker’s one liners never get old.
Hell Let Loose on PC: Yes, back to this again. Like I said in the past, this game is a time machine. If you want to see what your grandfather went through over in Europe, this is a taste. I’ve got more friends playing it now so that drive to win, and the camaraderie and the blood, sweat and tears are more meaningful. It’s a bit of a grind, but when you finally level up and are able to unlock that next level weapon, the game suddenly feels brand new. I was with my buddies, just spawned and about ready to head out when I glanced through the gossamer fog at a hulking figure in a field across the distance. He was an enemy. I took aim and fired a single shot. He stumbled forward, face first onto the ground. I looked at his prone bulk on the ground, a dark lump that in any other situation could have been a log or a piece of discarded farm machinery abandoned to rust. And I suddenly felt bad. No more summer night laughter, no more ice cream, there would be no griping about going to work or getting sick. There would be nothing more for this young man lying there lifeless. When was the last time a computer game made you feel like that?
Need For Speed: Shift 2 on PC: Been playing this one off and on for almost two years now. I’m finally at 92% completion. The races now are all endurance races which means I’m behind the wheel for 40 minutes. (That’s an eternity for an arcade racer). And I also have to revisit the drift races I had previously passed over, thinking I wouldn’t have to do them at all. Doh! Ah, the prices we pay to finish games.
2023 Subaru Forester: It was time. I was saddened to give up my beautiful Mustang, a pet dragon in every sense of the word, but I’d had her for six years. I needed an old man car. I indirectly build the cars, so why not drive one? Yes, I bought a Subaru! I ordered it and it took me four months to get. (I remember thinking I’m never going to get the car!) But when I pulled into the dealership and was walked out to the lot by the salesman and introduced to the car all it took was one look and I knew I had made the right decision. This car is part zombie apocalypse vehicle and part Lost in Space chariot. I once owned a Jeep Wrangler and I don’t think it was this utilitarian. I wouldn’t be afraid to drive to Mars in this car.
Planet Coaster on PC: Management sims always grab me in and pull me under the same way. I start in dipping my toes. It’s enticing enough I eventually leave the wading pull and swim out to the deep end. And then I sink. It actually happened with Planet Coaster. I purchased the game a few years back but didn’t get very far. I gave up hope and stopped playing. This past month I decided to revisit it and boy howdy! Using your funds to build rides you eventually accrue enough money to expand and create a rollercoaster. I struggled to get to this point but when I finally laid the last plank of my coaster, so much money started rolling in that I could inflate my prices and I was still profiting! Noticing my coaster line queue reaching sea serpent-like lengths, I kept raising ticket prices until people started choosing to go ride other rides. End result? I’m rich! There are so many great mechanics in the game. You have the ability to see the park in first person view by simply choosing one of your patrons and seeing the park through their eyes. You are in charge of the salaries of your vendors and park workers as well, not to mention how many condiments and confections you can put on your sandwiches/drinks.
