February 2025 wrap-up

In February 2025 I....

 

Played: Darius Cozmic Collection (2021); G-Darius HD (2022); Guardian Force - Saturn Tribute (1998; 2022); Assetto Corsa (2014); Steel Empire (1992, 2018); Rolling Gunner (2018); Shooting Game KARI (1997; 2022); Strikers 1945 (1995, 2020); Zero Gunner 2- (2001, 2020); Drainus (2022)

Got: The Sea Will Claim Everything (2016); Thaumistry: In Charm's Way (2017).

Favourite: The top 3 is Assetto Corsa, TRIZEAL Remix and  Drainus... while I played Assetto Corsa more, the favourite has to be Drainus. It's familiarly nostalgic but at the same time so innovative it's hard not to be enchanted with it. Assetto Corsa is a different beast but ended up with some niggles (perhaps due to excessive play) - the gameplay is certainly there but some of its more "gamey" aspects get in the way of the experience - unlike the wonderful long gone F355 Challenge.

Read: The Dictionary of Imaginary Places (1980, 1999); Teddy Boys: Post-War Britain and the First Youth Revolution (2024); SEGA CD Summer (2022); GameCube Anthology (2018); Alan Partridge: Every Ruddy Word (2013).

Got: Memoirs Of A Mangy Lover; Terry Jones' Barbarians: An Alternative Roman History; Terry Jones' Medieval Lives.

Favourite: Not a great month for reading. The Dictionary of Imaginary Places is, of course, a brilliant book but too uneven to consider it a classic. The Alan Partridge script book, as all script books, is good but the character itself is a bit grating. In the end, I always have a soft spot for amateurish books with a lot of heart so SEGA CD Summer, being a novel, ended up providing a different and original view that was entertaining and didn't overstay its welcome.

Listened to (new): nought

Got: nought

Favourite (new): nought

Final thoughts: This month the enthusiasm seems to have died down a bit. Reading was ample but the books were generally long and not filled with gems. The games were very one-sided with shooters with a big dose of driving simulation. Reading back my January wrap-up I can confirm that while I tried to play more music, I didn't feel very into it and listening is still in the pits.

This was a month marked by significative professional changes and perhaps the hectic lifestyle added to the lack of interest. It also spurred an interest in offline activities as I'm waiting to fulfill the old dream of learning to ride a motorcycle. And, even in the last couple of days I've been turned on to other activities like small plane flying or boat driving.

Writing has also beenin the pits, perhaps due to having burned myself out. I am satisfied that with only two months gone this has already been the most fruitful year this blog has add in blog posts alone.

I have also stuck with buying less games. It's true I bought my first two games of the year this month but they were for a pittance. I have also reduced my wishlist to just 3 very modest games that, even still, I will wait for a sale on. I can say that currently I'm not really looking forward to playing anything. I do still have about two columns worth of installed games but I can surely keep playing old favourites and ones I already have that I haven't gone far in.

I have also stuck with evicting the Az book store and in a very satisfying way. We'll see how it gets on with new books or self-published ones in the coming months...

The games I played perhaps reflect the need to shut off my brain. Shoot'em ups and driving games are great for precisely this reason: you get in the zone and just think about doing as best as you can with no story distractions or complex mechanics or thinking. In the end, though, the feeling of having played just to pass the time creeps in, as apart from becoming good at the specific games, there's no significative cultural gain. As for books as I said, it wasn't a great month. The Imaginary Places book and the GameCube book were very long and uneven. Alan Partridge's book was good but perhaps the script book I have enjoyed less, perhaps because the series is somewhat less than a classic. As for music I keep just listening in the car. But because of now having a shorter commute, I have probably listened even less. I keep my YouTube block going... It will be one year next month.

In March perhaps with a hotter weather I will feel more comfortable playing (it really is not a great instrument to play when it's very cold or very warm). I plan to go through a few more shoot'em ups before I give a go to something else - perhaps later in the month. I'm looking forward to reading the books I got this month in March. I have always loved Groucho's writing (I was intending to re-read the three I already have) and I have never read a Terry Jones book - mixing this with History as a favourite subject should be a bonus. What is my goal? I perhaps won't set a goal but one of these days, a weekend, I will have to commit to logging in to YouTube and catch up. I'm sure that'll kickstart some great music I've been missing out on. And hopefully by this time next month I will have ridden a motorbike for the first time or, at least, about to. Fingers crossed!