Update 3
Gaming has been a little weird since the last update, as I started a YouTube channel and it’s surprisingly hard to try and find a good balance between working on a new video and gaming. I had to go play games like Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne again, and it feels very unusual to play games for a video instead of purely for my enjoyment. Anyway, here’s what I did manage to do since then, even if it’s not much!
Games beaten:
Little Kitty, Big City 
GAME
PASS
2.20 hours, 11 of 39 achievements
6/10
It was cute and charming, controls felt a little janky at times but that wasn't really an issue.
Prey 
14 hours, no achievements
6/10
Finally, I've beaten this. It took a lot of suffering. There were parts that I really didn't like, especially towards the end. BUT it's not a bad game by any means. The start of the game is very strong and in my opinion the ending and the lore are very good as well. The amount of choice you get as a player to approach the game in any way you want is impressive, but definitely a bit overwhelming. There are a lot of mechanics to remember. It has some highs and peaks like the fight when the music is playing while you're getting the voice samples and some pretty low lows.
Am I glad I finished it? Sure. My friend is happy that I played through his favourite game and that alone already made it worth it. Will I ever touch it again? No.
Games abandoned:
Ok ok chill out, I know this is a game that everyone loves.
I don't get it tho.
I've tried to give this game a fair chance. However, there hasn't been a single moment where I thought to myself that this is fun. I understand that the whole game is like a puzzle, where you search for clues in the text you read and somehow piece it all together. The problem is, I find it hard to care for any of it. There was nothing to really make me feel invested in the world and want to discover the secrets of some ancient civilisation, so I just constantly find myself skipping through all the text I find and any dialogue I start. I really want to like this game, and feeling like this just makes me feel like there's something wrong with me, but I don't think there's anything I can do to change that.
Currently actively playing:
-
Split Fiction
New backlog additions:
Citizen Sleeper
Also bought Elden Ring for Steam, though I’ve played through it multiple times on my PS5 already.
There’s definitely viable shield builds if you really wanted to go down that route, but I agree that rolling is generally a better fit (and more fun) for the fast pace of most enemies and bosses. Just make sure you’re not on heavy equip load. If you’re ever struggling a lot, bleed builds are incredibly op. Other than that just have fun and explore a lot, you can always go somewhere else if you get stuck for a bit and return stronger :)
I don’t think it’s such a big deal you didn’t connect with Outer Wilds. I find it a masterpiece and I know a lot of people rave about it, but I completely get your feelings of disengagement - the game tries to hook you with lore baits in the beginning, and I feel that if it’s enough to hook you, you’ll have a fantastic time and won’t put it down until you beat it. But if you’re not hooked and curious enough by the time you get your launch codes, you probably won’t care a lot for the rest of it (which seems to be your case).
Maybe sleep on it and start from scratch again in a few months. If the beginning of the game still doesn’t hook you, don’t even bother as that’s pretty much the launching point for the rest of it. It definitely asks for the player to be curious and engaged while providing very little plot points or guidance, so it’s easy to feel you’re wandering aimlessly and just stumbling onto things instead of having a plan and seeing that plan open into multiple plans.
That said, I really hope it clicks for you at some point. It’s one of the games I have the fondest memories playing :)
You’re right, maybe in a few years or something I’ll return to it with a whole new mindset! Could just be university draining me out rn and making me feel like I don’t have the brain power to spare for games like this haha
For sure!
Now, I just started my Elden Ring journey for the first time, so I’d take any hints you have hahaha
For now, I stumbled onto the Stormfoot Catacombs and I’m trying to make my way through it. Apparently relying too much on a shield is a mistake, so I’ll try to play the game without holding R1 as I’m doing now and try to get more comfortable with rolling, as that seems to be the key