Backlog 2024

[Kikki]

Finally figured out adding 'friends' in Pocket Camp Complete. It's actually extremely easy once you see how it's done (it's a bit tricky to figure out the first time, ime) but you can in NO WAY actually play with these friends. You just go into the Camper Card section, press the QR code button within it, and then aim your phone at the QR code on someone else's camper card, and boom, they're 'saved' to your collection of Camper Cards and can from then on appear at Whistle Pass, where you can go emoji with them and maybe get a present from one of them and Shovel Quarry help with three of them. Just tap on them and they'll emote or do one of those things. They go nowhere and show up nowhere else. I don't think you can visit their camp anymore, either, or get their help with watering or send gifts or anything else. Haven't found any way to do any of those things.

It's 100% a solo game, no multiplayer of any kind. It's just that you can save other players' avatars to have them show up in Whistle Pass. There are already tons of people who've posted their camper cards online, and there's no reason why you need to ask permission to scan or add them, since it doesn't actually do anything, to be added. You don't get notified, or anything. They're just there to be decorative and get you into the Quarry, as far as I can tell.

I'm gonna play Nordics today, I swear I am! I'll just keep it to 1-2 hours to avoid any issues. Can't afford extra issues. Job stuff is piling on lots of extra issues as it is so I have to hoard up healing time this month. Hoping I'll soon start to get better instead of worse! Well, no matter what, this month should be valuable for figuring some things out.

EDIT: Schedule is super up in the air. I'm getting called for unscheduled stuff and feels like that may happen a lot this month. I think I have to dedicate an actual chunk of time, multiple times a day, for certain yoga moves, lol. Otherwise I'm not gonna last! Gotta loosen the things that get too tight before they snap.

Ring Fit doesn't work well this month. Maybe if I make a custom workout that's mostly cardio?

~

TWO DAYS LATER EDIT: I've been watching a streamer a little since they're doing one of the games I most like to see someone play for the first time. Anything to do with streamers and YouTubers usually reminds me of Mikodesu. Where IS Mikodesu? Hope she just got a super fun life lately and is too busy with all the fun to stop by.

I did play something like 2 or even 3 hours of Nordics, and it's really a fun game, but man does it do a number on my neck! All the frenzied button-pushing! I may have to limit myself to just one hour. Though I'm so defective...right now even typing this is making everything tense up. I really think I need some dental Botox.

Pocket Camp Complete is way better than original PoCa. SO much easier to get Leaf Tokens, so you can get lots of the fancy paid stuff. Or at least, way faster than before. Before you probably had to save tickets for a month to get one big paid item, but with the tokens you can buy something every day. Though the Camper Cards are a big wash; they're boring. I like being able to get help easily for Shovel Quarry, but I miss being able to send gifts to my 'friends'.

Gotta work again today so I won't be playing any Nordics! But at least I played enough to remind myself how everything works. Though...I don't 100% remember the story, lol.

I have a huge hankering to play AA4 again. Wish I'd gone ahead and bought the compilation while it was on 40% off!

[Bluie]

I tried Infinity Nikki for a few hours yesterday and I can fully admit that I am not this game's target audience - and that the gacha in it is absolute garbage. Had this game come out a few years earlier, then I might have vibed more with it, but it's just not for me. The main draw is using the main character, Nikki, as your personal dress up doll so you can explore the open world with your own personal look. The customization is pretty insane, like, Style Savvy levels insane, but therein lies the problem; the gacha. I was under the impression that when pulling for an outfit you'd get all of it once hitting pity, but no, no-no-no, you get a PIECE of it. Yes, a singular piece of the outfit you want. And outfits that have overworld powers connected to them MUST have all pieces in order for them to work. The game gives you enough outfits to get by, so you don't NEED the gacha, but I'm a little shocked at the audacity of it all. Anyways, I have more than enough fun dressing up my Final Fantasy XIV character for my fashion game fix. I also really, REALLY hate the trend Paimon started in Genshin that all these big budget gacha titles MUST have an annoying sidekick that never leaves your side. Star Rail did it best with Pom Pom, he's stuck on the train and participates in story pertaining to the train OR sends you a text message once and awhile - and that's it. I get that having a mascot is important for marketing, but Nikki's 'Momo' would be infinitely better not being there - plus all his outfits are tied to the game's battle pass! GIMME A FREAKING BREAK!

So yeah, it's a definite 'no' for me. Plenty of others are enjoying it though, so I'm happy for them. On a related side note, I found out there's been even more VAs being removed in Star Rail / Genshin on the English side. There's a strike going on, so I get it, but I'll definitely be switching to Japanese in Star Rail if/when I go back. For Genshin, IDK, I feel so attached to the English VA that it'd be really hard to switch them, but in seeing I'll be starting in a fresh region, maybe it wont be so bad. Eh, worries for later...

[Bluie]

Mom says it's my turn to double post.

I've actually done quite a bit of gaming in the past fiveish days. I 'finished' Astliba, as in I've gotten a handful of endings and seen the credits, but it's officially gotten too grindy for my liking. I hit a boss wall and my motivation to keep going for the true ending evaporated. I'm still counting it as done, I gave it 40 hours of my life lol.

While I have most of the Star Rail's socials muted for the time being, I was still informed that they have a 5 Star character selector as of the most recent update and it's a limited event. So I redownloaded and grabbed the only one I didn't have from the list; Bailu. I then decided, because I had a bunch of YT essays to get caught up on, I'd build her in the background. I also turned the voices to Japanese, to try them out, and honestly, so far (from what I've heard) is pretty good. I had no idea Boothill shares a VA from Fate's Gilgamesh which threw me through a (not entirely unwelcome) loop. Not a fan of Topaz's VA, but I could eventaully get used to it. I am tempted to play through one of the current events to get the one 4 Star I'm missing, but I'm still undecided on that.

Finally got all the Dawntrail combat role quests finished in FFXIV. I'm not touching tanking again until whatever the next expansion is years from now lol. Moved onto crafting and I'm currently working on the Alchemist role quests which shouldn't take too long as leveling crafters is hilariously easy if you have a fat sack of gil. My FiL literally only plays FFXIV to craft and make money (and then never spend it). He sends me a couple million dollars in-game every once in awhile and I am forever grateful. It has made some of my more annoying grinds much more manageable. Unfortunately, Bicolor gemstone FATE grinding still has to be done by myself, unless I drag along some people. but for the most part, it's all me. I prioritized it in Endwalker, but this time around, I'll probably keep it until last.

P.S. If you're reading this Kiki, I'm more or less not busy after this week. If you need someone to organize the yearly Ushi gaming wrap-up that we do, just let me know.

[Kikki]

P.S. If you're reading this Kiki, I'm more or less not busy after this week. If you need someone to organize the yearly Ushi gaming wrap-up that we do, just let me know.

I'm reading!

If you would LIKE to do it, by all means! I don't like seeing my own name on the board too many times in a row, lol. (Not a specific number, I just don't like seeing the board plastered with it, like I'm the one doing all the jabbering, all by myself.) Also, it's not like it's MY thread so I don't like to act like it is.

However, since I've done them before, all I have to do is copy and paste and change the first paragraph (and any spot where it says '2023') and then I'm done, so it's actually a pretty quick job.

So yeah, if you'd like to do it, then for sure. But otherwise, no worries! A new Backlog thread is very easy, too. Neither takes me long.

~

I've been replaying Ace Attorney. Cuz I wanna. No other reason. Plus I'm rather beat up this month and I often need to be lying in bed rather than sitting, lol, so anything on the 3DS is great. It's just such a cozy little system. Ys...well. I should stick an hour in here and there to keep myself from getting rusty, but it's simply too demanding of the hands/arms/neck with the frenzy of button-mashing. I have to avoid playing more than very short sessions until the new year.

And I don't remember what else I was playing. I still have Pikmin 4 to finish. It's the kind of game that's fun when I'm playing it, but that has no staying power. I have NO feelings for the characters or 'story', so nothing really draws me back. Oh yeah, Coral Island. I sort of finished it, in that the ocean storyline was done, and they didn't integrate updates beyond that very well, so now everything left just feels like post-game wrap up that I'm not interested in, even though I don't have anything to A rank, let alone S rank.

Those are the games I can remember. I'm pretty sure I've forgotten some others. I'm still a bit upset about losing my One Note gaming file! But I'm good on budget, at least.

[Code_Name_Geek]

I made it to the end of my semester! (More or less, I do have one class that spans the break that I have a decent amount of work left in but it's a huge difference from four classes all at once.) Which means, I finally got to start Sonic X Shadow Generations today!

I played for almost five hours straight which is probably more gaming than I've done in the past month, and had a ton of fun. I did a bit of Sonic's story first since I haven't actually played the original game, and then switched to Shadow's story because his is the one I really want to play. They gave him a whole bunch of (really cool) new moves in this game so I've been getting used to the controls. I'm glad I put in the effort to play so many other Sonic games before this one because it's fun recognizing the returning stages and music, especially Shadow's since I kind of played all the games he has a major role in.

So yeah, that's probably going to take up the rest of my gaming this year haha. I can even see myself going for S ranks on Shadow's stages at least. I do also want to play some ACNH to get some seasonal items and because I've never played in the winter before, but other than that I don't have any big plans. Hoping to strike a better courseload balance next semester so I have more time to play games between school and work!

[Kikki]

Okay, I didn't watch The Game Awards, and I'm not sorry, cuz I saw the winners just now and I don't even know what most of the games are, including the GotY. I think that one might have a robot MC that I saw in a PS icon once, and that's the limit of my awareness of it.

Anyway, just found out one thing from TGA that I AM really interested in, and that's that FFVII Rebirth is coming to PC on January 23. WOO! Plus, and this is important...it's already being optimized for Steam Deck. So I can play it! No idea if it will be finished optimization by release day for PC.

I think on January 1 I will pre-order to get the 30% discount, since I will DEFINITELY be getting the game later. (As soon as it can be played on Deck, I'd be grabbing it.) Might as well nab it while on sale and then just wait until it's ready.

~

Finished AA4 and AA5 replays. Now I don't know what to play. I've replayed almost all my games this year. Trails, Tales, Xenoblade, Ace Attorney, Trio of Towns, Somnium Files/Nirvana Initiative, etc. It really saves money to just enjoy your favourite games over again, that's for sure. I did play a handful of really fun new games too, but honestly, when I lost my One Note, I lost track of what I played. I could go back and comb this thread for it, but that sounds exhausting, so I'm not sure. It's gonna be tricky to fill in a lot of the GotY thread questions this year.

I do still need (and want) to finish Nordics, but I get too involved in playing it once I start and then I end up with jaw clenching and neck pain and a numb arm. :/ (Not entirely the game's fault, but it does exacerbate an existing problem.) I need to set some kind of timer up for about an hour, to remind me to STOP PLAYING after a relatively short amount of time. Not a lot of fun that way but if I want to finish it this year, I'll have to. Or maybe I'll have to wait until January. Not sure how January is going to go, yet.

Spoiler:

Anxiety is buried when I'm busy but I notice it ROARS back to life any time something goes even very slightly 'wrong'. Including even the tiniest bits of conflict. :/ So obviously it's not under control, I'm just too busy to give it much headspace. I was hoping this would 'fix' it, though I did know that way of thinking was probably too simplistic. Yep, one little thing goes wrong and suddenly I'm worried about everything under the sun. My anxiety can't even pick a target, now that I've at least temporarily 'solved' the one thing I was most fixated on.

Meh. Whatcha gonna do? Not let anything ever go even slightly wrong, I guess. Lol.

[FarmingForDaysMan]

I have also finished up my semester! After years of being burnt out on waiting for Stardew Valley mobile updates, I finally got back into the game on my Switch.

I started playing Infinity Nikki on my iPad and absolutely loved it, but I can’t play it anymore because it keeps kicking me out during this one cutscene, and I am quite literally stuck since the cutscene restarts every time I reopen the game.

I think I’m going to try to keep working on a guide for Hometown Story (I had started writing one over the summer, I think). The OST for this game is available on my YouTube channel (FarmingForDaysMan) if anyone wants to check it out!

Finally, a question: Is Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp worth buying?

[Kikki]

Finally, a question: Is Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp worth buying?

I have Pocket Camp Complete. But that question is impossible to answer without knowing what would make it worthwhile for you.

Did you like the original Pocket Camp? How much? Did you want anything to change about it?

You can no longer interact with any other humans. You can add their camper cards to have their avatar appear in your game, but you can only do silly emotes with those avatars and get their help getting into the Quarry. They aren't real people. You can no longer go and see anyone else's camp, or send them gifts, or receive any gifts. (You can get one gift per day from an avatar character. Who it is and what you get is random, and has nothing to do with the actual human being who made that character avatar.)

However, the currency that replaced Leaf Tickets is now MUCH easier to get, so you can get all the special items much faster, and there are ways to access seasonal and special items at all times, via complete tickets and so on.

It's otherwise still the same game. You talk to animals, gift them things, and level up their friendship. That makes YOU level up bit by bit, and you get rewards on level up. There isn't anything else to the game. It's extremely shallow now, as it has always been, imo.

If you loved Pocket Camp before, then it's probably worthwhile. It's almost entirely the same game.

If you WOULD have loved it before, but hated how hard it was to save up Leaf Tickets (or tokens or whatever they were originally called) to get all the premium goods, then you will now like Pocket Camp more than you used to, since premium items are WAY easier to get, now.

However, if you loved Pocket Camp before and a big part of that was being able to see other players' campsites and sending them gifts and stickers and things, then you may find this disappointing, because all of that is gone.

If you didn't (overall) particularly like Pocket Camp before, you probably won't like it now, either.

That's the best I can do, to tell you if it's worth it or not, without knowing what would give it worth in your eyes.

[FarmingForDaysMan]

@Kikki Ahh, sorry, I didn’t clarify this, but I’ve never had the original Pocket Camp. And I meant to say Pocket Camp Complete. xD I might be giving this game a try in the near future! Thank you for answering my question.

[Kikki]

I like Pocket Camp Complete better than the original 'online' Pocket Camp. Though I do miss sending and receiving lots of presents and being able to buy from other players market boxes and things like that.

~

A person on Facebook really wanted to play another game 'like Stardew'. I gave a couple of recommendations, but included Fields of Mistria and Sun Haven...even though I haven't played them...due to what I've heard. I did be sure to clarify that I haven't played them.

But I do own Sun Haven! So last night, I decided there was no reason not to try it. I've finished my Ace Attorney replays, I don't want to go back to Coral Island or Pikmin 4 right now, and Ys Nordics knots me up too much. So I decided to see if my recommendation to a cry of "I need more Stardew-like gameplay!" was any good.

IT IS.

Sun Haven is super fun, and a LOT like Stardew (they use many of the same little game systems and mechanics) except it's even busier with little things and the colours and portraits are way more to my preference. (Jewel-toned instead of Super Orange, and the characters don't look like they fell out of a 1990 sitcom.) In other words, I personally like it BETTER than Stardew, though I'm not claiming it IS better, just that it's more to my personal preferences.

I really like the way they do character dialogue, too. It follows a path, so it feels more like a conversation than just an automatic 1 or 2-line response. It could be even better, but this is a step up from most farming sim character dialogue. I'm interested to see if it changes over time as FP rises. (FP goes up pretty easily if you choose flattering or supportive dialogue options, too.)

I only meant to just start up the game and get past the opening, but I ended up playing for 6 hours last night.

I don't know if I have time, today. Only if I restrain myself, lol. But long play sessions are more fun than short ones because you start out uncertainly and then get into a groove!

I also tried Pentiment the day before yesterday, though just for half an hour. It's got SO many branching choices! I quit when I ran into my first one that I later realized would cause me (Andreas) to break a promise he'd already made to someone else. :/ The "THIS WILL BE REMEMBERED LATER" notification any time you make an impactful choice is...oddly threatening, lol.

[Bluie]

I gotcha, Kiki. I'll leave it to you still. I offered just in case you weren't feeling up to it or lacked time. Still, if you need anything, just drop me a DM.

----

I've done a little gaming. I started Dragon Quest Monsters Dark Prince and I'm not sure if I want to continue? It's nostalgia bomb for me, I love Dragon Quest IV, and it having a prequel like this is super cool, but I'm just not a huge fan of the DQM play style. I did kinda see what I wanted to - Psaro's origins plus how he met Rose, but I don't know if I care enough to continue. If anything, I bought it to support my love for the title's predecessor, and I might be satisfied with just that.

My grind in FFXIV continues, now having finished the Alchemist and Goldsmithing role quests. Working on Fishing's now, but I keep missing boats to get my levels lol. However, on the one I managed to catch, I finally got the seagull minion, and it's adjacent achievement is called 'Mine, Mine, Mine' looool. Probably will work on it more today. Right now I'm really only pining to finish my replay of Fire Emblem Engage, do quest clean up in Tears of the Kingdom, and start a new playthrough of Stardew Valley on my PS5. I keep telling myself to get back into Warframe or try TemTem (it's free this month with Plus), but I haven't gotten the motivation yet. Also still playing with going back to Star Rail, but again, I want Screwlum. Where is he, Hoyo.

[Kikki]

Okey doke! I will put the new Backlog thread and the GotY 2024 thread together tomorrow (or within the next three days) and then just hit 'submit' on December 31.

Everybody gather your gaming memories of 2024 up so you can post about 'em.

~

I love Sun Haven. It's better than Coral Island. Coral Island is pretty good and the graphics are smoother (not pixelated, for one thing!) but the content of Sun Haven just suits me so well. I like it much better than Stardew. I like Stardew, but have never loved it, especially since I find the candidates so lacklustre. (Elliot is the ONLY one I've ever been interested in, and for him I need to apply a mod so I don't have to look at Pixel Fabio all the time.)

So many things to do, too! Lots of fun tasks every day. I like the farming and the mining and I'm even okay with the fishing. (You can use nets if you don't want to pole fish...both contribute XP to raise your level.) I really like that your level goes WAY up, too, like Rune Factory. Probably, I'm guessing, to 99 or so.

The game references a lot of things...much of the content is CLEARLY inspired (very heavily) by Stardew itself, but also by Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Narnia, Twilight, Legend of Zelda, and a whole bunch of other popular fantasy stories in various media. I've noticed quite a lot of it in the mechanics, the dialogue, etc.

There are quite a lot of candidates I like, too. Only about two of the guys are ones I'm not into at all.

I got a Nintendo GC from my baby sis. $50. Not enough for an AAA game but a decent chunk of one. I think I'll just save it for one of the games coming up that I know I want, since spring looks heavy for me, with XCX Switch, Fantasy Life i, Trails through Daybreak 2, Guardians of Azuma...and actually, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth in January! So those three months for me are loaded. More than I can/would pay for, so I will have to choose which ones I need day one versus which can wait. I'll be able to get one extra on day one thanks to sis.

[Harvest Moon kawaii]

Sympathy Kiss is a little too simple for me. It's nice, but it's pretty much pure office-lady romance, no real story. I like otoges that lean hard into story, even to the point of people claiming romantic moments are few and far between. My first otoge was Hakuoki. The second was Nameless. Both have stories where all routes wind together and you get the story in thin, intriguing layers. SK is completely separate routes that don't intertwine at all. What you learn about one guy in his route doesn't carry over to the facts about the same guy in another guy's route. I don't like that. The characters are decent, though. But yeah, not exactly an intricately-crafted story. Barely a story at all. Voiceless character that doesn't even get her own speech bubbles and never gets her face shown. I don't like that type of MC. I want an MC with a compelling story.

I forgot to reply to this. Since it's the end of 2024, I hope I can still put my reply here. Yeah, I like otome games where there's an amazing story. Romance is amazing, too. I just want something to happen. And yeah, a faceless main character is really, really weird.

In 9 R.I.P. I've finished 5 character's routes already. (Kureha, Hibiki, Sena, Koyo, and Seiya). Minami is up next.

And I got to buy Virche Evermore: Epic Lycoris (Super excited) Also, there's a stage play going on right now in Japan, or about to be, of the first game, I think. Seems awesome.

I got the shiny Black Rayquaza in Pokemon Violet and completed the Paldea Pokedex.

Also, dabbled in a few other games here and there.

[Bluie]

This'll be my last post in this topic. I finished another game, though it was just a tiny gag visual novel; 'The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog'. It was cute and a very well put together experience for an April Fools joke. I also got some ShadowXAmy crumbs, so overall worth it lol. I also started 'fault - StP - LIGHTKRAVTE' (because I legit forgot I owned it) and I might finish it before the year ends, I might not. PC gaming is a pain to me, so I have to be in the mood to boot up steam.

One thing I have been in the mood for, surprisingly, is Zenless Zone Zero. I stopped playing it once the VAs were striking and a character I liked got their voice replaced, but I switched to Japanese to see how the QoL updates are. Man, not gonna lie, I missed this game. I combat is so fun and the characters are very likeable. They even gave the one character I was initially saving for away for free, so, I guess I'm hooked back in. I wouldn't mind putting a few of my days off into it once I have the chance to. I'm still not feeling it with Star Rail - especially since I'm playing through a filler arc with THE BRATTIEST character I cannot stand. I remember seeing her promo video before taking a break and I just knew she wasn't going to be my thing but man, talk about a mood killer. IDK, until Screwlum is confirmed, I may just put it in the same category as Genshin. ZZZ though, I want to go back, I want to play it - I'm having FUN.

Besides that, still working on leveling classes in FFXIV. FiL gave me 10mil in-game so I can definitely cheese it a bunch and make it simpler. Really looking forward to Monster Hunter Wilds next year. I can't wait to get lost in another MH game. I might even take some vacation for it...

[Kikki]

This'll be my last post in this topic.

For a second there, that made me jump, lol. I thought...WHAT? Why? Why, why...whyyyyyy?

But then I realized it's December 28th, so it probably means 'the last post in Backlog 2024' because it ends in three days. (And I'll have the Backlog 2025 thread up on December 31.)

I will also have the 'GotY' 2024 thread up on December 31, so everybody scrape your gaming memories together so you can tell everyone what kind of year you had and which games you played that are worth recommending! (And which ones are worth warning others away from.)

~

Meanwhile, I'm 33% done the Sun Haven museum, and I just got my 'Has $100,000.00!' achievement, so I can afford to buy some upgrades! I think I'll go for a house upgrade. I like the candidates in this and you have to have the third upgrade to get your spouse to move in with you. (You don't have to have it to marry them, just to get them to live there, as they get their own room. TBH, I feel like having your own room would make marriage much more appealing, lol. I do NOT want to share my sleeping space overnight! It's hard enough to sleep with all of my own kinks and quirks, let alone with a whole second set of them right beside me. NO THANK YOU. I love the second bedroom idea. Or at least separate beds! They could be right beside each other like in a hotel, but your own sleep habits are isolated, then.)

Oops, that went off on a tangent, didn't it.

I've finally found things I don't like about Sun Haven. Don't get me wrong! I still love it. But here's what I now have to complain about...

The other locations feel tacked-on. Each location has its own currency. Okay. Each one has its own crafting table, and its own type of lumber and rock. Each crafting and construction table has EXACTLY the same list of recipes in it, except you have to make them with the materials of that area, and they'll pop out, exactly the same machine, except with that town's style in appearance.

That's the only difference. And each of the other locations that has a growing space ONLY has all-season crops, so each of the other locations just feels like they stamped Sun Haven down into a new place and put vines and leaves all over everything for one place, shells and fins for another, and fangs and batwings for a third. There isn't much POINT to the other places.

I love the candidates from what I'll call the 'leafy place' (I remember the name but we'll avoid spoilers. Not that anyone cares, I bet.) But the other places aren't as well laid-out as Sun Haven itself, and Sun Haven just feels like the 'REAL' location while the other places feel like...a kid playing pretend, somehow. Or like someone using a Sharpie to draw a mustache and goatee on someone's photo. It in no way really disguises the person in the photo, it just looks...kind of ridiculous?

I don't know how to say it, but while I like the (small!) stories each place has and I like the characters, the other places don't feel like they have any real value. Though the fang place is great to fish in, and the leaf place is great for getting tons of animal food without breaking the bank. At least in my game it is.

Well, I love the game, but there ya go. That's my worst downside so far. The other locations just don't feel satisfying, somehow. *shrug*