And for at least a few months, we have finished yet another series. (Nordic is dropping soon.) I have absolutely loved every Ys game I have played till now, but I will admit I was a bit nervous this time around. I was not hearing great things from friends about this one, so I waited this time till I could get it on sale. But I am here to tell you right now, there was no reason to fear such concerns. In fact, I think I have a new favorite of the series.
Hi again everybody! Every day that passes is another day closer to Game Day, the culmination of Extra Life, and we are now a few scant months away. How close are we? Well for most people, gameday will be November 2nd, starting bright and early (8 or 9 AM LOCAL time, no I don't care what time-zone... it doesn't work like that). And for the first time in years, I will not be using a rain date to go the next weekend! It's been too long, but I can be there for the actual 25-hour marathon this year. I hope to see you all there, new and familiar faces, cause it really is a fun time.
But with my own schedule solidified, it is time to get ready, and to have that last big push to bring in donations so we can help the sick kids... but here I think I've gotten ahead of myself for anyone new so let me step back a second.
For those of you who are new here, Extra Life is a 24 (or 25) hour gaming marathon and charity event a lot of us gamers take part in to help sick kids local to us every year. Each one of us has signed up on the site here and try to raise money for the hospital we chose to play for. I myself play for Boston Children's Hospital as my own page can attest. All of this, however is handled by the Children's Miracle Network so they will handle all the details with any donations received, but it all goes to the hospital you choose to play for, so you really are making a personal difference by playing.
And while I will be streaming my marathon and it will be video games, these are optional if you wish to take part. Not everyone will have a stream going, choosing instead perhaps to just have a local event. Nor are video games the only option. Basically if you have nerdy things you like to do, you can make it part of the event. Board games, card games, table top RPGs, miniatures... it's all good. Hell if you wanted to and could figure out how to make it work, LARPing would probably work as well. (But you better start planning that campaign if you wanted to do that... November is going to come quicker then you think.) So yeah, all are welcome to help make these kids' lives just a little bit better. And of course if you can't make it on November 2nd, you can always rain date it to another weekend that works for you... just try to go the full time when you take it on.
If, however, none of this sounds like your kind of thing, you can also help by donating to another player and help them help sick kids. If you would like to do so for anyone in my team, thank you deeply and completely, and we will make this as easy as we can. Clicking the image below or this link here will take you to the Red Sector team page. Once there the donate button will guide you step-by-step to pick which team member you want to donate under the name of (everyone plays for their own hospital choice... that isn't decided by the team), choose how much you want to, and even leave a message if you so desire (anonymous is also an option if you don't want to leave a name). If you take this option, thank you very much. We are humbled for any help we can bring for the kids.
But with that simple note, I'm afraid my time to talk is up. See you next time and see you on Game Day.
- Megabyte
Usually when I pick up games during the infamous Summer or Winter sale, they tend to be cheaper titles I am interested in, but not so much I want to play right away. Rather they share the fate of falling into the ever growing pit known as my backlog. But sometimes games refuse to stay there long... and then we get things like we have today, a small indie title that refused to stay dormant about life's choices, a guide trying to figure out what yours were long ago, and the fun you can have pissing him off along the way. Come inside.
Once again as I show off a new game each week for Extra-Life, we come across another freebie meant to be completed in a single session just sitting around on Steam and waiting to be played. This time, however, it was a title that had waited a lot longer in my backlog. In fact it's possible this one waited a few years. And even then, I can only hope based on what I played we get to see more come of it. There wasn't a lot here, but what was here was some really good atmospheric work and signs of a lot of talent I would hate to see go to waste.