From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action


Tick-tock, the clock says another month has passed and now it's June.
That means it's time again to discuss what we played in May. I can't
say I'm thrilled to see June roll around; I like the cold wintry
months and dread the encroaching heat of summer. Give me snow!

Here's my play-list.

Superbrief
---------------------------------------
* Donut County
* Ghost Busters Remastered
* Star Wars: Outlaws
* American Truck Simulator: Illinois


Maximum Verbosity
---------------------------------------

* Donut County
https://store.steampowered.com/app/702670/Donut_County/
The idea behind "Donut County" sounded neat. You take on the role of a
racoon who controls a mobile hole with which he can drop things out of existence. Like the Katamari games, your hole can --at the start--
only swallow tiny things, but the more you 'feed' it, the larger it
gets... until whole buildings can fall into its bottomless maw. With
its flat-shaded polygonal world, it also reminded me of "The Untitled
Goose Game". It seemed a cute, casual puzzle game.

It's not. Oh, it's cute, I suppose but puzzle game? Not in the least.
The levels are simple and there's absolutely no challenge. There's not
even a timer. Get plopped in a level, wiggle your mouse around to move
the hole; eat the small things, then the medium, then the large. Level
over. Watch a tiresome (and unskippable) cutscene with annoying
anthropomorphic animals. Repeat 12 more times.

Oh, there are a /few/ minor puzzles. For example, in some levels you
need to bump your hole against a button so it lights a nearby
firecracker, then you have to swallow the firecracker with your hole,
then move the hole underneath a target and hit the 'catapult' button
to shoot the lit firecracker back out of your hole at the target. But
it requires no real skill or brainpower to solve these puzzles, there
are infinite retries, and the sense of satisfaction from figuring it
out is nil.

The most difficult part of the game was the unexpected boss-fight at
the end... and then only because the game didn't lock the cursor to
the game window, so every time I tried to dodge his attacks, my mouse
moved over to my second monitor and the game lost focus. Without this
problem, the fight itself wasn't difficult, but it wasn't worth the
bother to solve the technical issues. I probably could have found some
hack to lock the cursor to the game-window, but I honestly couldn't be
arsed. The game wasn't rewarding enough for me to put in that effort.

Like I said, the idea behind the game was fine. But the actual game as presented was just awful. If there had been some actual challenge
--and if the awful narrative and characters weren't so annoying-- I
might have had fun. As it is, this is probably one of the most
disappointing games I've played so far this year.



* Ghostbusters Remastered https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449280/Ghostbusters_The_Video_Game_Remastered/

It's been a while since I played this game.

Well, technically, I have never played THIS game. This is the first
time I played the 2019 'Remastered' version of the 2009 "Ghostbusters"
game. Not that I really can tell the difference between the original
and the remaster that came out a decade later. The textures are a bit
sharper, I guess, and they changed the color balance some. Still, the
original game captured the look and feel of the movies fairly well,
and the remaster doesn't do too much to improve upon that. If all you
have is the original, you aren't really missing out by not playing the remaster.

Actually, in some respects the Remaster seemed slightly worse. Not
visually or in gameplay, but a lot of the scripted events seemed less
snappy; I'd be waiting for the characters to move into position to
open doors or react to events in a way I didn't recall when I first
played the game in 2009. It added a sense of artificiality to the
experience; a reminder that this wasn't a fun movie but digital
puppets waiting for the perfect moment to say do their thing. Maybe
the original game suffered the same problem... but I don't remember it
that way. Nonetheless, it was a fairly minor issue.

The gameplay is adequate. To be quite honest, it's the second weakest
part of the title. The ghost wrangling was fun, but unfortunately that
only occupied a fraction of the game. A lot of the enemies were
monstrosities you simply shot at until they vaporized. It was only the
bigger ghoulies you had to wrestle into the ghost-traps; the smaller
fry were hordes of easily defeated poltergeists whose main tactic was
to simply run into you. Also, while some of the level design was
fantastic, about half of the levels were overly long, linear and
repetitive slogs. They were all great to look at, filled with lots of interesting details... but in terms of gameplay some of the levels
could have used an editor's touch.

I said the gameplay was the second-worst bit of the game; the worst
was the voice-acting. Well, not all the voice-acting. Most of the
characters --almost all played by the actors from the original
movies-- jumped into their roles with gusto, and it was terrific to
hear them reprise their roles. With one exception: Bill Murray gave
such a lackluster performance that he brought down every scene he was
in.

Despite this, the game is remarkably fun, and captures everything I
loved about the original films. It does a great job of wrapping up the
lose ends from the first two movies --much better than the sequels
that came out years later-- and I've always considered this to be the
'real' third movie in the franchise. The game captures that weird mix
of dry humor, sci-fi action, and supernatural horror that made the
movies so memorable. It's not the greatest game in the world, but it
definitely is the best Ghostbusters game ever made, and fans of the
franchise need to play it at least once.


* Star Wars: Outlaws https://store.steampowered.com/app/2842040/Star_Wars_Outlaws/

Even the desktop icon is wrong.

Do not mistake me; even though it got a lot of flak, "Star Wars:
Outlaws" is not a bad game; not really. It gorgeously recaptures a lot
of the look of the Star Wars franchise, and it gives the player a lot
of stuff to do. The combat is adequate, and the level design is pretty
good. But it's never going to be my favorite Star Wars game, and that
darn desktop icon indicates why.

See, that icon is a silhouette of Nix, the protagonists pet space-rat
(I'm sure there's an official name for its species but I'm too lazy to wookiepedia it). In the game, it plays a side-role as the
protagonist's friend (and a useful tool in and out of combat); there's
even a few quests that revolve around it. But because it's such a
(nominally) cute critter, it has taken an outsized role in the game's marketing. It doesn't surprise me that the game's desktop icon
features Nix.

The thing is, I detest the little space-rat. It's... well, it's
everything wrong with the Disneyfication of the Star Wars franchise;
the attempt to make it extra marketable and family-friendly. It's
Grogu and BB-8 and the kids from Skeleton Crew all rolled-up into one.
There's nothing wrong with the critter itself, and far be it from me
from saying it doesn't belong in Star Wars. But it's not the type of
Star Wars I enjoy playing.

And it's not just Nix-the-space-rat; he's just indicative of the
game's overall tone; a safe and harmless action-adventure through the
Star Wars universe. The characters and story are all so generic that
even by Star Wars standards they feel exceptionally cliche. Add to
that the usual Ubisoft open-world formula and it's really hard for me
to get excited about the game.

Like I said, the game itself is fine. I get why some people really
love it, and I don't hate it myself. But there are a lot better Star
Wars experiences out there than this one.



* American Truck Simulator: Illinois https://store.steampowered.com/app/3486960/American_Truck_Simulator__Illinois/

C'mon, you knew this one was coming.

So, there are two parts to this write-up. The first really has nothing
to do with the Illinois expansion; rather, it's my experience playing
the game with the third-party "LookPilot" app, which allows you to use
a webcam for head-tracking. This allows you to look left or right in
the game simply by turning your head left or right in real life. And
--as I mentioned in an earlier post-- it works surprisingly well (with
caveats) and definitely adds to the immersion. But while I intended to
use the software for my entire exploration of the new expansion, after
a few sessions I decided against it.

For regular driving, it's acceptable, even neat... but when I'm
exploring a new map, my head is on a swivel, gawking at all the new
scenery and keeping an eye out for unmarked passages (drivable roads
not shown on the map, leading to secret areas as a hidden reward for
observant drivers). The slow response and limited turn radius of the
LookPilot software just wasn't up to the task. Not to mention using
the software requires an extra stiffness of the neck that makes the
driving a bit more tiring than usual. I'm not against using the
head-tracking software again in the future... but only when I'm doing
'regular' hauling runs, and not manically speeding down every foot of
pavement of a new region.

And speaking of which: Illinois! Finally, 10 years after "American
Truck Simulator" first came out, at last we are east of the
Mississippi! I have been waiting for this day for a decade; at long
last we're out of the barren westlands of America and into the lush
East.

And how lush it is. The terrain has steadily become greener with each
recent expansion, but Illinois finally approaches that dark, jungly
appearance that comes to mind when I think of American forests in
summer. The developers are obviously proud of this representation too,
since they put an unusual amount of effort into visiting various
state-parks and campgrounds where all this nature can be gawked at
from close at hand. Such locations aren't unknown to other expansions,
but there are far more featured in Illinois. Strangely, there also
seemed to be a lot of effort put into the electrical infrastructure
(maybe one of the developers watched https://youtu.be/Wi0aRzT-fV8 ?)
because all the power wires seemed to be believably connected.
Although that I noticed something so minor probably says more about me
than the developers...

My initial reaction to the expansion wasn't entirely positive; the
southern part of the state was unnaturally flat and the layout of
towns and roads felt artificial; I really got the impression that the
less skilled map-designer got that assignment. But the farther north I
went, the better the map became in design; more rolling hills, longer
and more impressive sight-lines, and generally more impressive and
realistic locales. And then... Chicago!

I was dreading my exploration of Chicago. "American Truck Simulator"
(and its European cousin) normally have a very hands-off approach to
cities, with most of them feeling little more than sparse backdrops
you whiz by on the highway. This isn't in and of itself a problem.
This is a game about driving massive 18-wheeler trucks, and that sort
of vehicle isn't normally found in the center of a major metropolis.
And so, if cities like LA or Denver feel like little more than a few
scattered depots backdropped by a fancy cityscape skybox, that doesn't
really hurt the gameplay. But Chicago is one of America's biggest
cities, and I've some familiarity with the place too... so too see it
so clumsily represented wasn't something I was looking forward to.

Fortunately, the developers went above and beyond with the city. Even
miles out, it looms in the distance as you approach it, with its
famous skyline slowly edging closer. The suburbs soon close in around
you, and then you're in the outer neighborhoods. You push forward and
soon you're in the heart of the city itself. The actual amount of city
you can explore is still fairly limited, but it does include driving
by some of the metropolis' more famous locations, including the
Buckingham Fountain, the Chicago Riverwalk, and Wacker Drive. While it
doesn't have the same complexity and detail as cities in some racing
games, still I was more than satisfied with both the quality and
quantity of city provided. Cities aren't really the focus of the game
after all. But unlike the often characterless and generic cities found
in the rest of "American Truck Simulator", Chicago really stood out as
its own unique place.

If I have one real criticism of the new map, it's that the
aforementioned 'hidden passages' are just a bit too convoluted and
complex. In prior expansions, each was a fairly short offshoot; a
quick loop of road to drive down and see something neat before
returning to the main drag. The hidden areas in Illinois, however,
have numerous loops and intersections and fully exploring each area
requires just a bit more backtracking than I found enjoyable. I love
the extra effort put into these secret bits; I just wish they made
each area simpler in design but more numerous in quantity.

Still, despite its minor flaws, I loved the Illinois expansion. It's a
shame the next few DLC maps are going back west across the Mississippi
(the Dakotas are next in the schedule to release) since I'd love to
see more of the East... maybe even getting to the East coast before
another decade passes by. But either way, I'll still keep playing. Ten
years in, the Truck Simulator games continue to entrance me.


---------------------------------------

The weather's getting warmer, so I'll probably be obligated to go
outside and do summer things... but a part of me wishes I could just
cuddle around my warm PC and keep playing more games. But we'll see
how it all plays out next month. Until then, there's just one thing
left to say:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?





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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Besides lots of yard work, I've barely played anything.

TL;DR:
** The Surge 2
** Captain Blood
** Outlaws

Verbose Mode Engaged:
** The Surge 2
Sci-Fi Soulslike. I played this at the beginning of the month, I got to
the 3rd boss, and found it a bit too difficult, and unlike other souls
games, too complicated there, and put it down. The third boss has 7 (or more?) parts you can target, 3 of them different, all of them with about
the same or more health as a regular tough enemy, and does a ton of
damage in large areas. I was getting close to beating it, but I just
got tired of the long slog through all the parts each time, and unlike
other souls games it didn't seem there was anywhere I could go besides
that boss to level up and gain better gear.

** Captain Blood
A giveaway from Prime on GOG. A hack-and-slash Action/Adventure. I
finished it, and it was somewhat fun, but it was very consolized with
long stretches of no checkpoints, quick time battles, and fixed cameras
which were annoying when it changed to the opposite view and I kept
getting stuck at transitions, as I would immediately be going back
through the transition, or fighting things that were near the camera.

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me.
--
-Justisaur

ø-ø
(\_/)\
`-'\ `--.___,
¶¬'\( ,_.-'
\\
^'
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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Mon, 1 Jun 2026 09:49:23 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me.

I'm one of those fans and I adore the game, but I'll also be the first
to admit that it's not a game I'd recommend to anybody anymore. Even
when it released back in 1997, it was already a bit behind the curve
both in its visuals and in its gameplay, and it was only in regards to
its production values --its artistic visuals, its excellent
voice-acting and its music-- that it became so memorable. It is not a
game that has aged all that well, with linear level design that relies
a bit too much on mazes and 'keycards' (albeit in the form of
door-opening switches) to be very enjoyable anymore. Even in 1997
people were complaining about its 'old school' feel! Twenty-nine years
later and it can feel quite tedious.

It's one of the best of the old-school "Doom-clones". I don't think
I'd quite qualify it as a 'boomer-shooter' as it lacks the same pacing
and bombacity; it's more akin to the games that followed Doom but
tried to set themselves apart with slightly deeper settings and
gameplay tweaks, such as games like Dark Forces, Witchhaven, Future
Shock and Strife. It's a genre that set the path for the modern FPS
birthed by games like "Half Life", but doesn't quite have the same
instant gratification of "Doom". As such, it satisfies fans of neither
genre, being a hybrid of the two.

Still, for its time Outlaws was quite impressive, and until the Red
Dead Redemption games was probably the best Western FPS available on
PC, even decades after its release. But even great games have their
time, and it's passed with Outlaws, remaining something only
old-school schmucks (like myself) really care about anymore.






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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> wrote:

On Mon, 1 Jun 2026 09:49:23 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me.

I'm one of those fans and I adore the game, but I'll also be the first
to admit that it's not a game I'd recommend to anybody anymore. Even
when it released back in 1997, it was already a bit behind the curve
both in its visuals and in its gameplay, and it was only in regards to
its production values --its artistic visuals, its excellent
voice-acting and its music-- that it became so memorable. It is not a
game that has aged all that well, with linear level design that relies
a bit too much on mazes and 'keycards' (albeit in the form of
door-opening switches) to be very enjoyable anymore. Even in 1997
people were complaining about its 'old school' feel! Twenty-nine years
later and it can feel quite tedious.

It's one of the best of the old-school "Doom-clones". I don't think
I'd quite qualify it as a 'boomer-shooter' as it lacks the same pacing
and bombacity; it's more akin to the games that followed Doom but
tried to set themselves apart with slightly deeper settings and
gameplay tweaks, such as games like Dark Forces, Witchhaven, Future
Shock and Strife. It's a genre that set the path for the modern FPS
birthed by games like "Half Life", but doesn't quite have the same
instant gratification of "Doom". As such, it satisfies fans of neither
genre, being a hybrid of the two.

Still, for its time Outlaws was quite impressive, and until the Red
Dead Redemption games was probably the best Western FPS available on
PC, even decades after its release. But even great games have their
time, and it's passed with Outlaws, remaining something only
old-school schmucks (like myself) really care about anymore.

Outlaws was awesome back then. Loved the animated cutscenes (sad intro)
and soundtracks. Multiplayer was fun too!
--
"I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." --Revelation 21:2-4. Now pls.
Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
/\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
/ /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
| |o o| |
\ _ /
( )
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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Same games as before! I did play a free weekend of Sunderfolk. I liked it!


Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Besides lots of yard work, I've barely played anything.

TL;DR:
** The Surge 2
** Captain Blood
** Outlaws

Verbose Mode Engaged:
** The Surge 2
Sci-Fi Soulslike. I played this at the beginning of the month, I got to
the 3rd boss, and found it a bit too difficult, and unlike other souls games, too complicated there, and put it down. The third boss has 7 (or more?) parts you can target, 3 of them different, all of them with about
the same or more health as a regular tough enemy, and does a ton of
damage in large areas. I was getting close to beating it, but I just
got tired of the long slog through all the parts each time, and unlike
other souls games it didn't seem there was anywhere I could go besides
that boss to level up and gain better gear.

** Captain Blood
A giveaway from Prime on GOG. A hack-and-slash Action/Adventure. I
finished it, and it was somewhat fun, but it was very consolized with
long stretches of no checkpoints, quick time battles, and fixed cameras which were annoying when it changed to the opposite view and I kept
getting stuck at transitions, as I would immediately be going back
through the transition, or fighting things that were near the camera.

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me.

--
"I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." --Revelation 21:2-4. Now pls.
Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
/\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
/ /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
| |o o| |
\ _ /
( )
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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Ant wrote:

Same games as before! I did play a free weekend of Sunderfolk. I liked it!

I quit playing because everyone here thinks I am not valid.
--
The future has begun
The waiting is over
We have gained time
For one blink of an eye
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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Resident Evil Revelations 2
After getting huge dumb enjoyment from RE3 Remake last month, it was hard to resist another RE, and RERev2 has been sitting in my library for years unplayed. This one takes place in the RE universe sometime after RE5 (set
in africa), and during RE6 (set in china), and Claire Redfield is now with some organization battling the Umbrella virus and winds up on an island somewhere in russia with a few sidekicks and a bunch of angry zombies. The fun gameplay mechanic here is swapping viewpoints back and forth between two characters with different skills and abilities to solve objectives, like having one grab a puzzle key while the other races to turn off the
descending spike ceiling, like that. With two pairs of characters trying to locate each other, you're given two parallel plot lines as in an episodic television show, providing some nice variety for the player. Other games
have done this (Alan Wake comes to mind). Graphics are a touch dated, but I had good fun. There's a small bug where a QTE doesn't activate at >60fps,
so be aware you'll have to limit framerate at that one point. For next
month I installed Remember Me, being attracted by the gameworld, we'll see
if I stick with it!

rms



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On Tue, 2 Jun 2026 00:17:40 -0000 (UTC), [email protected] (Ant) said
this thing:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> wrote:

On Mon, 1 Jun 2026 09:49:23 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me.

I'm one of those fans and I adore the game, but I'll also be the first
to admit that it's not a game I'd recommend to anybody anymore. Even
when it released back in 1997, it was already a bit behind the curve
both in its visuals and in its gameplay, and it was only in regards to
its production values --its artistic visuals, its excellent
voice-acting and its music-- that it became so memorable. It is not a
game that has aged all that well, with linear level design that relies
a bit too much on mazes and 'keycards' (albeit in the form of
door-opening switches) to be very enjoyable anymore. Even in 1997
people were complaining about its 'old school' feel! Twenty-nine years
later and it can feel quite tedious.

It's one of the best of the old-school "Doom-clones". I don't think
I'd quite qualify it as a 'boomer-shooter' as it lacks the same pacing
and bombacity; it's more akin to the games that followed Doom but
tried to set themselves apart with slightly deeper settings and
gameplay tweaks, such as games like Dark Forces, Witchhaven, Future
Shock and Strife. It's a genre that set the path for the modern FPS
birthed by games like "Half Life", but doesn't quite have the same
instant gratification of "Doom". As such, it satisfies fans of neither
genre, being a hybrid of the two.

Still, for its time Outlaws was quite impressive, and until the Red
Dead Redemption games was probably the best Western FPS available on
PC, even decades after its release. But even great games have their
time, and it's passed with Outlaws, remaining something only
old-school schmucks (like myself) really care about anymore.

Outlaws was awesome back then. Loved the animated cutscenes (sad intro)
and soundtracks. Multiplayer was fun too!

The cutscenes were quite good. They were created, I think, by the same
art team behind "Curse of Monkey Island". They weren't the greatest
animation ever, but certainly they were a highpoint for PC games at
the time.

Strangely, it was a very long time before I actually saw the complete introductory cinematic. My version of the game shipped with a damaged
file that caused the intro to cut-off about halfway through its
playback (around the 4:35 mark in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCMh-88a2DI). Still, it was enough to
give the general idea and tone of the story, and fortunately none of
the other cinematics were affected. But it wasn't until I found it on
YouTube a decade later (and later, when the game released on GOG) when
I first saw the video to its end. In some respects, I preferred the foreshortened version, since it left things more mysterious while
still making it clear what happened.

(I remember being quite disappointed when I found the version on
YouTube; this was at the start of the service and the compression
levels back then were quite awful. I was so happy when GOG released
the game and I could see it without the massive compression blocks
ruining the video. Fortunately, the versions found nowadays on YouTube
are rendered at a much better quality).


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From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On 6/2/2026 11:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

On Tue, 2 Jun 2026 00:17:40 -0000 (UTC), [email protected] (Ant) said
this thing:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> wrote:

On Mon, 1 Jun 2026 09:49:23 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour >>>> or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for me. >>

I'm one of those fans and I adore the game, but I'll also be the first
to admit that it's not a game I'd recommend to anybody anymore. Even
when it released back in 1997, it was already a bit behind the curve
both in its visuals and in its gameplay, and it was only in regards to
its production values --its artistic visuals, its excellent
voice-acting and its music-- that it became so memorable. It is not a
game that has aged all that well, with linear level design that relies
a bit too much on mazes and 'keycards' (albeit in the form of
door-opening switches) to be very enjoyable anymore. Even in 1997
people were complaining about its 'old school' feel! Twenty-nine years
later and it can feel quite tedious.

It's one of the best of the old-school "Doom-clones". I don't think
I'd quite qualify it as a 'boomer-shooter' as it lacks the same pacing
and bombacity; it's more akin to the games that followed Doom but
tried to set themselves apart with slightly deeper settings and
gameplay tweaks, such as games like Dark Forces, Witchhaven, Future
Shock and Strife. It's a genre that set the path for the modern FPS
birthed by games like "Half Life", but doesn't quite have the same
instant gratification of "Doom". As such, it satisfies fans of neither
genre, being a hybrid of the two.

Still, for its time Outlaws was quite impressive, and until the Red
Dead Redemption games was probably the best Western FPS available on
PC, even decades after its release. But even great games have their
time, and it's passed with Outlaws, remaining something only
old-school schmucks (like myself) really care about anymore.

Outlaws was awesome back then. Loved the animated cutscenes (sad intro)
and soundtracks. Multiplayer was fun too!

The cutscenes were quite good. They were created, I think, by the same
art team behind "Curse of Monkey Island". They weren't the greatest
animation ever, but certainly they were a highpoint for PC games at
the time.

Perhaps I've seen too many westerns, I found it cliche'.
--
-Justisaur

ø-ø
(\_/)\
`-'\ `--.___,
¶¬'\( ,_.-'
\\
^'
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Justisaur <[email protected]> writes:

** Outlaws
(Free from Prime on GOG?) A 1997 western fps. I only gave this an hour
or two, I know it's well loved by it's fans, but just didn't do it for
me.

I also played this recently. Decent retro fun but a little unforgiving
in some aspects. And a little unfinished. I also remember I got killed a
lot at first. Maybe I turned down the difficulty but then it was
munchkin.
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Tue, 2 Jun 2026 14:13:58 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

Perhaps I've seen too many westerns, I found it cliche'.

It definitely was cliche. "Outlaws" wore its love for the spaghetti
western on its sleeve and made no bones about the fact that it was
emulating the old classic movies. It was a game filled with tropes and
nods to the old films, right down to the protagonist being the
white-hat sheriff gunning for a gang of outlaws.

But even more than just being an homage to the genre-classics, you
have to remember that in the era that "Outlaws" released, the western
was only starting to come back into prominence, having been absent
from film and screen for decades. So a lot of the deconstructions that
have been made of the genre hadn't yet been created. Had "Outlaws"
gone with a more radical take -with fewer of the common tropes- on the
western wouldn't, I don't think, have been as well received. There
just wasn't the common narrative language that make modern
deconstructions so well understood by the ordinary player.

But, as you pointed out, the changes in how we view media and its
tropes make it that much harder for modern gamers to appreciate older
games like "Outlaws"; they seem simplistic and cliche in comparison to
the stuff we get today.

As I said, as much as I adore the game it's not really something I'd
recommend to new players anymore.
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> writes:

* Star Wars: Outlaws

The thing is, I detest the little space-rat. It's... well, it's
everything wrong with the Disneyfication of the Star Wars franchise;
the attempt to make it extra marketable and family-friendly. It's
Grogu and BB-8 and the kids from Skeleton Crew all rolled-up into one.

Gah, Skeleton Crew. I tried but I was reminded strongly of a children's
sciffy book I read log ago, Space Hostages by Nicholas Fisk. Skeleton
Crew seems very similar except with even more stereotypical characters
and of course an idiot ADHD kid is a must have now. Couldn't stand it.

But I don't know about Nix. Maybe you're right, too cute but the magic
sensing and door opening abilities are useful. Maybe if you could just
replace it with a magic gadget instead... Or the force.

Like I said, the game itself is fine. I get why some people really
love it, and I don't hate it myself. But there are a lot better Star
Wars experiences out there than this one.

Really? Enough for a dozen?

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Just Starfield, here and there. I guess the plot thingy is moving
forward, I was recently attacked by some super thugs. Or enlightened
beings? But they went with just "goods here or else." Sigh. Here I was
hoping for something interesting, story wise.

I hope this doesn't mean I now need to update my space ship since I
really don't care about which bucket I fly. In fact I already have a
second ship but I don't even know where the heck it is or how to switch
to it.

Also disappointed in that I finished this somewhat dubious stint of
missions with a megacorp and was rewarded with some mind control
tech. Which in practice gives one point in a tier 4 skill and possibly
you can make people move, pick up things or unlock doors. For which I've
had zero use so far but could be useful if sneaking. It does give a "manipulation" option in some dialogs which I have found a little use
for.

While doing this, I left my companion behind since I felt they might
object to what I was doing. And two of them in fact wanted to talk about
what I did and didn't do, as if they both had been there with me. At
least that part was somewhat interesting since I didn't want to
needlessly antagonize them although that probably doesn't matter much
for game play. But it's good to have someone around who'll draw a little
fire if nothing else, even if they don't really work for sneaking.

Another side mission was where a shady business transaction went bad,
someone wanted their stolen thingy back. At the time I was a little
tired of sneaking around so I went all "death to all" with them and surprisingly nobody seemed to complain or get upset about the body
count. Weird. Companions usually do get upset if I murder civvies
otherwise.
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Sun, 07 Jun 2026 13:27:01 +0300, Anssi Saari <[email protected]> said this thing:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> writes:

* Star Wars: Outlaws

The thing is, I detest the little space-rat. It's... well, it's
everything wrong with the Disneyfication of the Star Wars franchise;
the attempt to make it extra marketable and family-friendly. It's
Grogu and BB-8 and the kids from Skeleton Crew all rolled-up into one.

Gah, Skeleton Crew. I tried but I was reminded strongly of a children's >sciffy book I read log ago, Space Hostages by Nicholas Fisk. Skeleton
Crew seems very similar except with even more stereotypical characters
and of course an idiot ADHD kid is a must have now. Couldn't stand it.

But I don't know about Nix. Maybe you're right, too cute but the magic >sensing and door opening abilities are useful. Maybe if you could just >replace it with a magic gadget instead... Or the force.

Maybe its just my expectations. The game promised to let you play as
an outlaw, but then put you in the shoes of a pre-made character with
awful dialog and little real control over the course of your
adventure. And not a really compelling character either; instead, one
who just gets tossed about the galaxy. The space-rat was just
indicative of her non-personality and lack of personal impetus. She
was a typical Hollywood "helpless waif" character; fine if you like
that, but not what I wanted out of my adventure.

There's nothing itself wrong with the space-rat; as you mentioned,
it's got some useful abilities. But that it was so front-and-center to
the marketing of the game shows that I was not the intended audience
for this game. I think Ubisoft were going after the fans who fell in
love with Grogu-the-baby-space-frog in the 'Mandalorian" TV series;
the more casual fans of the Star Wars franchise. I wanted something a
bit deeper.





(And yes, I fully see the irony of demanding depth from a video game
based in franchise as sophomoric as "Star Wars" ;-)




--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> writes:

The space-rat was just indicative of her non-personality and lack of
personal impetus. She was a typical Hollywood "helpless waif"
character; fine if you like that, but not what I wanted out of my
adventure.

Come to think of it, I put a lot of hours into this but what was it
about again? You got into some trouble and then out of it, I think. It
was pretty good for a "helpless waif" to mow down those stormtroopers
though. Even the badass ones. But too much of a bubble world, not even a blaster burn was there from your previous attack on an outpost...

I think Ubisoft were going after the fans who fell in love with Grogu-the-baby-space-frog in the 'Mandalorian" TV series; the more
casual fans of the Star Wars franchise. I wanted something a bit
deeper.

Yah. I just saw the movie. Entertaining but, well, totally forgettable.

(And yes, I fully see the irony of demanding depth from a video game
based in franchise as sophomoric as "Star Wars" ;-)

:)
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Besides lots of yard work, I've barely played anything.

[snip]


Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

I have two new games, Golden Sun (GBA) which I just started playing on emulator, and i bought Zero Escape on steam because it was 80% off which
is pretty cool
--
user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Mon, 8 Jun 2026 15:10:04 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <[email protected]> said this thing:

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Eternal September is just trying to protect you from the madness. Send
a thank-you note to the ES sysops for saving your sanity. ;-)


--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

On 6/1/2026 7:56 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Besides lots of yard work, I've barely played anything.

[snip]

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?
--
-Justisaur

ø-ø
(\_/)\
`-'\ `--.___,
¶¬'\( ,_.-'
\\
^'
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 09:45:57 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?

Maybe I triggered candycanearter07's kill-file for using words like
"bust", "hole", "wiggle" and "swallow" (and that's just in the first
few paratgraphs). Read in a particular way, my posts are positively pornographic ;-)
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 09:45:57 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?

Maybe I triggered candycanearter07's kill-file for using words like
"bust", "hole", "wiggle" and "swallow" (and that's just in the first
few paratgraphs). Read in a particular way, my posts are positively >pornographic ;-)

Why am I reminded of that Frantics skit?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qmUJpcPAaM

Predicted the whole "take offense at everything by skewing it's meaning
and listening with an agenda" people, and they did it back in 1987.

Xocyll
--
I don't particularly want you to FOAD, myself. You'll be more of
a cautionary example if you'll FO And Get Chronically, Incurably,
Painfully, Progressively, Expensively, Debilitatingly Ill. So
FOAGCIPPEDI. -- Mike Andrews responding to an idiot in asr
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On 6/10/2026 2:35 AM, Xocyll wrote:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 09:45:57 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?

Maybe I triggered candycanearter07's kill-file for using words like
"bust", "hole", "wiggle" and "swallow" (and that's just in the first
few paratgraphs). Read in a particular way, my posts are positively
pornographic ;-)

Why am I reminded of that Frantics skit?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qmUJpcPAaM

Haha! Thanks for that. I was only familar with their "Boot to the Head"
--
-Justisaur

ø-ø
(\_/)\
`-'\ `--.___,
¶¬'\( ,_.-'
\\
^'
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

On Wed, 10 Jun 2026 05:35:50 -0400, Xocyll <[email protected]> said this
thing:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> looked up from reading the >entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 09:45:57 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?

Maybe I triggered candycanearter07's kill-file for using words like
"bust", "hole", "wiggle" and "swallow" (and that's just in the first
few paratgraphs). Read in a particular way, my posts are positively >>pornographic ;-)

Why am I reminded of that Frantics skit?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qmUJpcPAaM

Predicted the whole "take offense at everything by skewing it's meaning
and listening with an agenda" people, and they did it back in 1987.

Or to quote the inimitable Tom Lehrer:


"Old books can be indecent books
Though recent books are bolder
For filth, I'm glad to say
Is in the mind of the beholder

"When correctly viewed
Everything is lewd.
I could tell you things about Peter Pan
And the Wizard of Oz - there's a dirty old man!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaHDBL7dVgs



--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

"When correctly viewed
Everything is lewd.
I could tell you things about Peter Pan
And the Wizard of Oz - there's a dirty old man!"

C'mon, that's just retarded and crazy. You have zero legitimacy.
--
The future has begun
The waiting is over
We have gained time
For one blink of an eye
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

Justisaur <[email protected]> looked up from reading the entrails of
the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

On 6/10/2026 2:35 AM, Xocyll wrote:

Spalls Hurgenson <[email protected]> looked up from reading the
entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
say:

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 09:45:57 -0700, Justisaur <[email protected]>
said this thing:

On 6/8/2026 8:10 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:

Justisaur <[email protected]> wrote at 16:49 this Monday (GMT):

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2026?

Not sure why, but E-S seems to have deleted Spalls original message
for me again...

Odd, I'm on E-S and I've got it, might be your news reader?

Maybe I triggered candycanearter07's kill-file for using words like
"bust", "hole", "wiggle" and "swallow" (and that's just in the first
few paratgraphs). Read in a particular way, my posts are positively
pornographic ;-)

Why am I reminded of that Frantics skit?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qmUJpcPAaM

Haha! Thanks for that. I was only familar with their "Boot to the Head"

They're from the same album.
Pretty much all of it is on Youtube.

Xocyll
--
I don't particularly want you to FOAD, myself. You'll be more of
a cautionary example if you'll FO And Get Chronically, Incurably,
Painfully, Progressively, Expensively, Debilitatingly Ill. So
FOAGCIPPEDI. -- Mike Andrews responding to an idiot in asr
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2