Durinthal's recent activity
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 4 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI've only played near-vanilla Minecraft so the scale that some mods get to is interesting to me, but even then a million of anything sounds like an absurd request. The amount of bread I needed...I've only played near-vanilla Minecraft so the scale that some mods get to is interesting to me, but even then a million of anything sounds like an absurd request.
The amount of bread I needed seemed reasonable on the surface since I regularly had that amount or more of most non-food resources, there was just no way to guarantee steady progress toward that goal. Stocks dwindle in the winter since production stops and the amount I had at any given time ended up yo-yoing quite a lot.
Not sure how much of the game I'll remember overall. I'd rather think back on something like Frostpunk where even if I didn't like the gameplay itself, it's memorable for its setting compared to a fairly generic fairy tale fantasy.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 4 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentBase Builder — Oh hey Civ VII just came out with a new upda— wait, before I spend the rest of the weekend on that, I finished my first run of Fabledom. As it says in the description, it's a...Base Builder — Oh hey Civ VII just came out with a new upda— wait, before I spend the rest of the
monthweekend on that, I finished my first run of Fabledom. As it says in the description, it's a laid-back city builder and as far as I could tell on the standard difficulty, it's nigh impossible to reach a failure state.Gameplay loop: it's your basic city builder.
You have a hero and can recruit soldiers to fight but they're more of an auxiliary resource than a requirement as the only things on the map that can fight are a few isolated point of interest enemies that mostly stay put and I didn't even check to see if they would attack anything but my combat units. A dragon occasionally shows up but that's a world event that you either have ballistas to chase away or just give it gold; otherwise your army can be sent on missions to other kingdoms that has no other interaction beyond waiting for them to get back.
The core loop is pretty standard fare: visitors show up on a regular basis and want to move in so you need housing, then they become workers that can go harvest basic resources which turn into advanced resources by way of processing facilities. There are a few basic sanitation and desirability meters for housing that need amenity buildings and then food and coal (in winter) are consumable resources. Peasants and commoners are two classes of residents with different types of buildings for housing and work (some shared for the latter) but when visitors arrive you can determine which class they go into based on what open housing you have so it's easy to balance. Increasing population unlocks new facilities over time with a palace and nobles at the final tier, though the nobles aren't handled quite the same as the other classes and are much more limited as a late-game thing.
A lot of it's logistics management by way of city planning, since all the workers need to return home to eat if their job site is far away it's less efficient. Similarly getting resources from one facility to the next is the other part, e.g. grain from a farm to a windmill to make flour to a bakery to make bread which then gets taken to shops or homes, with any of the three resources possibly being stored at a granary along the way.
So beyond the core city building loop, there are occasional events that require resources and give bonuses or eliminate a crisis like with the dragon, overall they're limited and repeat regularly outside of a few one-time point of interest events on the map. Then the main objective of the game is to talk to other nations, court one of the other rulers via completing missions for them, and eventually get married to them for a happily ever after ending.
Simple, not deep, doesn't seem like there's much in the way of extra complexity or variation that I missed out on unless there's a lot locked behind the higher difficulty levels. It took close to 13 hours for the full run, but it's the last two hours or so that were the most frustrating.
The final objective is to throw a wedding, and for that you need 1000 gold (easy), 500 bread, 500 juice, and 300 of a magic-related resource. I spent two hours trying to accumulate enough bread because there's no way to direct bread toward that specific objective or tell villagers to stop eating it, so I needed to outpace the consumption by a large enough margin to keep it above 500 bread stored across my entire kingdom. I ended up having to trade with all six other kingdoms to get every last grain, flour, and bread from them and then on top of that have a special event with one of the other rulers that stops my workers from feeling hungry for a while so I could build up enough stock. I ended up building a dozen windmills and bakeries just for this.
I didn't have a problem with gold or the magic resource because those are only spent when I choose to use them and I was steadily net positive. Juice wasn't a problem because the lower class didn't drink it and it was easy to out-produce consumption. So when I finally reached over 500 bread at 4:30am this morning I frantically clicked on the bu— what do you mean the button doesn't automatically become enabled once I have enough resources? Anyway, frantically clicked off the building and back on it again so I could click the button to start the wedding.
A short storybook wedding and epilogue happens (with very glitched out narration because that broke earlier in this session for some reason), and then you're dropped right back into the game where you left off for your happily ever after expanding kingdom. I promptly quit and uninstalled the game before going to sleep.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 4 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal LinkDurinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 5/25) Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 5/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick...Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 5/25)
Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 5/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick RNGesus Take the Wheel Genki Boys Finally Fantasy Four
✅ Final Fantasy IVLove in the Air v0.2.0 Maru's Events Schedules for Abigail/Leah JM8 and Ludo Super Robot Wars Never Ends First-Person Shooter Sam's Events Hard Games Siffrin's Been Waiting Five-Heart Event Three-Heart Event Supergiant Please
✅ TransistorMost Recent Purchase
✅ RavenswatchBase Builder
✅ FabledomSeven-Heart Event Visual Novels Take Forever
✅ Doki Doki Literature ClubWe'll have to see how much else I get done in the last week.
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Comment on What's your favorite personal gaming memory? in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI joined so many betas for MMOs in that era too, also a number of games where I got it on launch but didn't play beyond a month or two. Just off the top of my head was City of Heroes, WoW, Pirates...I joined so many betas for MMOs in that era too, also a number of games where I got it on launch but didn't play beyond a month or two. Just off the top of my head was City of Heroes, WoW, Pirates of the Burning Sea (which got me a keyboard and headset I used for several years in a Massively screenshot contest), Tabula Rasa, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, Age of Conan, even EVE for a bit.
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Comment on What's your favorite personal gaming memory? in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentThat reminds me of a fun time I had back in the beta for the original game. There were frequent skirmishes in Hillsbrad as one does, but we ended up having a truce through fishing and you can see...Still in WoW, participating in a hours-long open PvP battle of Southshore vs. Tarren Mill.
That reminds me of a fun time I had back in the beta for the original game. There were frequent skirmishes in Hillsbrad as one does, but we ended up having a truce through fishing and you can see the skeletons from the previous fights we had in that boat. Eventually I worked up enough courage to stand side by side with the enemy for a nice moment of calm.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 3 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentVisual Novels Take Forever — And so I played a short one that's already been covered this event, Doki Doki Literature Club. It was that or Hatoful Boyfriend and I had other people pick for me....Visual Novels Take Forever — And so I played a short one that's already been covered this event, Doki Doki Literature Club. It was that or Hatoful Boyfriend and I had other people pick for me.
Doki Doki Spoiler Club
I do have some prior experience with more standard visual novels like Fate/Stay Night, some of The Fruit of Grisaia, and Katawa Shoujo for another original English VN, and I already knew it was a more meta take so I was looking forward to it. I don't mind the regular tropes from other VNs that this particular game is eschewing, they're often just quite long therefore the card name.
I unfortunately don't have much to add beyond the previous write-ups about the content of the game other than agreeing with them and it's a neat take on the visual novel format that really can't be done in another medium, something I always appreciate. I was unfortunately already spoiled on a broad level with "Just Monika" and messing with the file system so my reactions were more "Oh, so that's the angle it's going with" on a more meta level as the game progressed, but maybe that's appropriate for the kind of game it is.
I regularly see Dan Salvato giving significant donations to charity during Games Done Quick events so I'm glad it worked out for him, but currently I'm cursing his name because the main musical motif has been stuck in my head for nearly a week.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 3 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal LinkDurinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 4/25) Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 4/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick...Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 4/25)
Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 4/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick RNGesus Take the Wheel Genki Boys Finally Fantasy Four
✅ Final Fantasy IVLove in the Air v0.2.0 Maru's Events Schedules for Abigail/Leah JM8 and Ludo Super Robot Wars Never Ends First-Person Shooter Sam's Events Hard Games Siffrin's Been Waiting Five-Heart Event Three-Heart Event Supergiant Please
✅ TransistorMost Recent Purchase
✅ RavenswatchBase Builder Seven-Heart Event Visual Novels Take Forever
✅ Doki Doki Literature ClubOnly one addition this week due to sumo spectating taking up a lot of my time, started one other but won't have the write-up until the next thread.
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Comment on Lifetime Plex Pass will cost $750 USD after July 1st in ~tv
Durinthal (edited )LinkI got my lifetime pass long enough ago that it's been well worth it (if it was $5/month I would have passed $750 total by now), though the main thing holding me to Plex now is inertia. I have a...I got my lifetime pass long enough ago that it's been well worth it (if it was $5/month I would have passed $750 total by now), though the main thing holding me to Plex now is inertia. I have a few friends that use my server as well and I could probably figure out how to securely share with them through Jellyfin in a way that minimizes friction, but I haven't had to yet.
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Comment on The boy that cried Mythos in ~comp
Durinthal Link ParentI figured the next step in the line would have been Epic, though maybe there's too much baggage around the term.I figured the next step in the line would have been Epic, though maybe there's too much baggage around the term.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 2 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentSupergiant Please — I played Bastion not long after it came out back in 2011 and greatly enjoyed it, with the soundtrack regularly popping up in my head to this day. So when the studio's sophomore...Supergiant Please — I played Bastion not long after it came out back in 2011 and greatly enjoyed it, with the soundtrack regularly popping up in my head to this day. So when the studio's sophomore effort Transistor came out a few years later I got that, but I was in a phase of my life where I wasn't playing many games in general so I only put in a couple of hours before putting it aside.
More than a decade later I'm finally sitting down to play through it start to finish and—dang, there's a bug that prevents the audio from it on the Steam Deck going through the dock. No problem, I jumped over to my copy of it on the Switch instead because it's one of the games I bought on multiple platforms.
I remembered having fun with the combat system and I really dove into it this time, switching combinations of functions regularly and largely favoring the turn-based aspect over the real time combat. In that regard it feels like the middle ground between Bastion and Hades (putting Pyre aside as something completely different and the last one I haven't finished yet), going from the former's pair of weapons that can be swapped out to four abilities at once that can be modified in different ways that can be seen as an early prototype for the Olympian boons of the latter. The more tactical nature of turns also reminds me of Hades II with Melinoë's casts anchoring enemies in place so you can maneuver around them.
The scope is otherwise much closer to Bastion, a sub-10 hour linear story with a small cast and a world that we get a window into but need to infer much more from without being able to rely on existing mythology.
After I finished it late last night I finally went searching for it to get thoughts from others that I've previously managed to dodge, so it was interesting to me to see that a lot of people thought the story was opaque or vague before I realized that it's really easy to just miss out on most of the detail. It's largely coming from either trying out all the commands in different ways for character stories or interacting with the terminals that can be passed right over if you don't head in the right direction for the setting, Red's development, and the main plot. I didn't mind that because I liked exploring the world but I can see other people not enjoying it.
Transistor ending — full spoilers (also some for Bastion)
Here's a video of it for anyone that wants a refresher.
After Red sat down and used the Transistor on herself and the screen began scrolling I was shouting at the screen, "No, that can't be the end, right? We were going to go restore everything!" And then you get their story and everything fits into place. It was a choice that Red made for herself rather than the player, similar to how she took a left on the bike ride early in the game to try to get him back rather than run away.
I love a good tragic romance so narratively the conclusion is immediately satisfying: Red and her lover are reunited in some form of the afterlife. It's picking a third option to the two that Bastion presents of Restoration or Evacuation, though there's a question of how much choice Red really has due to the setting. Even if she could restore the physical structure of Cloudbank, all the residents are gone and it doesn't appear possible for them to come back. Similarly the Country mentioned isn't as much a physical place as it is a euphemism (aside from the manifestation of it inside the Transistor that we see in Royce's fight and the end) and there's nowhere she could evacuate to, so she's left alone in an empty world. Bastion has the Kid wake up post-calamity while Red's living through it as it happens. Maybe with full administrator powers she could bring back everyone or at least create people again in some manner, but that's not something she wishes to find out.
One interpretation I read from someone wanting a happier ending is that they're literally logging off at the end and meeting in the physical world (which could also be what the Country refers to) akin to the situation the characters in Sword Art Online were stuck in, and while I can't say that's impossible I don't think there's enough evidence to support it from our limited perspective. The entirety of Cloudbank is a digital world and it seems like all the characters are also entirely AI, or at most digital copies of people so their existence is still scoped to Cloudbank even if the originals are out in another world.
Aside from that I think the setting was fascinating with absolute democracy controlling every matter of Cloudbank that can take place immediately, even trivial affairs. Everyone has a voice until it's taken by the Camerata with Red being the literal manifestation of that.
Anyway, I loved it and now I get to listen to the soundtrack in full.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 2 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal LinkDurinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 3/25) Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 3/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick...Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 3/25)
Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 3/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick RNGesus Take the Wheel Genki Boys Finally Fantasy Four
✅ Final Fantasy IVLove in the Air v0.2.0 Maru's Events Schedules for Abigail/Leah JM8 and Ludo Super Robot Wars Never Ends First-Person Shooter Sam's Events Hard Games Siffrin's Been Waiting Five-Heart Event Three-Heart Event Supergiant Please
✅ TransistorMost Recent Purchase
✅ RavenswatchBase Builder Seven-Heart Event Visual Novels Take Forever Just one addition so far, but it's one that'll be sticking in my mind for a while.
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Comment on What's your dream job? in ~life
Durinthal LinkThere are a number of jobs I've thought would be nice, but none that I'd take over my current career as a software engineer given the world we live in. If I didn't have to worry about finances...There are a number of jobs I've thought would be nice, but none that I'd take over my current career as a software engineer given the world we live in.
If I didn't have to worry about finances though, for some reason I've always thought it would be nice to run a small bakery (which I've enjoyed as a hobby but haven't done much of recently, maybe I should get back into that). Ideally it could also serve as a third space so have a café as part of it as well, though I'd let someone else be the barista.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI also have some unfinished business with them with a different game, will hopefully get to that soon. That's why Hades was the first roguelike I tried that clicked for me. I didn't really get the...I've always considered myself a fan of Supergiant Games, but if I'm being honest, I've probably spent more time listening to their games than playing them.
I also have some unfinished business with them with a different game, will hopefully get to that soon.
There's also a fair amount of new content introduced after each run.
That's why Hades was the first roguelike I tried that clicked for me. I didn't really get the appeal of trying the same thing again, shuffled, with the only goal being to get to the end. Hades made me want to see every character repeatedly to find out what happens next with their story, and each round of venturing out into Tartarus was the way to advance that. I eventually did come around to enjoying it for the sake of the gameplay as well and just having fun with each weapon, but it was the characters and story that hooked me.
I'm sorry I ever doubted you, Supergiant.
Bastion's "Setting Sail, Coming Home" is probably still my favorite from what I've heard of the lyrical songs but I do greatly enjoy what's in Hades as well.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI've noticed web novels sometimes act as a rough draft for something that gets cleaned up and published later, but that's different from in-place updates that games have. You might have some typo...I've noticed web novels sometimes act as a rough draft for something that gets cleaned up and published later, but that's different from in-place updates that games have. You might have some typo fixes or occasionally a new edition of a novel, or a director's cut of a film, but those are treated as separate entities that exist alongside each other that games have been tossing aside more recently outside of niche use cases. It's kind of funny thinking of speedrunners as looking for a first-edition volume because it's missing one word in a specific paragraph that lets them skip a chapter.
I see it as video games being the youngest medium of the ones listed and the most complicated in execution, so in the transition to the always-connected world they were the first to leap to having updates roll out to end users for bug fixes then content additions (expansions and DLC). Early access, depending on the game, is more like test screenings for a film being open to anyone that wants to opt in and give feedback on it with the understanding it's not the final cut.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentMost Recent Purchase — One of my personal goals this year is to not buy any new games and so far, so good. So the most recent purchase for me is several games at once during the winter sale in...Most Recent Purchase — One of my personal goals this year is to not buy any new games and so far, so good. So the most recent purchase for me is several games at once during the winter sale in December, among them Ravenswatch.
I don't remember how it caught my attention, I think it was some trailer along with "action roguelike" so I decided to pick it up. The best comparison I can think of would be calling it an isometric Elden Ring Nightreign, which I haven't played but have watched and seems similar. You run around a randomized map killing monsters to get experience and hitting points of interest for bonuses, earn ability upgrades upon leveling up with the usual pick from three options, and then after a time a boss spawns at a point on the map and you fight it and powers up the longer you avoid confronting it. Repeat the cycle for three bosses and... I dunno, I didn't make it that far.
Each hero you can play as has a different style so I can see getting hooked on a favorite with everything themed after classic fairy/folk tales. Scarlet is based on Little Red Riding Hood and is the rogue that transforms to a werewolf at night (there's a day/night cycle and the boss appears after a few days), Beowulf is a traditional sword-wielding warrior with more defensive abilities, and one I found interesting but hard to play initially is the Pied Piper, who has rats as disposable weapons along with music notes as projectiles.
This seems like the kind of game that would be fun with a group but I'm not that kind of gamer, so I'm putting it down after a couple of hours though I enjoyed my time so far. I might come back to it later but it's the kind of thing that doesn't necessarily have an end so I don't want to sink too much into it just yet.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI'm looking forward to eventually playing VII for the first time myself, though I think I'll keep going in order and revisit V and VI first which are the two I'm most familiar with so definitely...I'm looking forward to eventually playing VII for the first time myself, though I think I'll keep going in order and revisit V and VI first which are the two I'm most familiar with so definitely not this month.
I have friends that wanted to drag me into XIV but I wanted to understand more of the references to what came before first, so it'll take me a while to get through the earlier mainline entries (aside from XI which is the other MMO).
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentFinally Fantasy Four — To disappoint anyone expecting one of the weird cards to start, it's unfortunately just Final Fantasy IV... which some of you might have remembered me playing in a previous...Finally Fantasy Four — To disappoint anyone expecting one of the weird cards to start, it's unfortunately just Final Fantasy IV... which some of you might have remembered me playing in a previous Backlog Burner event. Well, this Steam guide has been open in a pinned tab in my browser for nearly two years as I always meant to get through the rest of it... but I never did.
I finally sat down and played through the rest of it and had a good time doing so. I don't have too much to add to my comment from before, other than reiterating that the quality of life features in the pixel remasters are something I greatly appreciate these days. When I was younger I didn't have a problem taking my time with the random encounter grind but I'm glad I could get through the entire game in under 13 hours without much in the way of filler, though there are some side quests that have you running back and forth across the world a few times. Turns out I was right about halfway through the game where I left off in terms of time, though a lot of the back end is focused on lengthy dungeons in contrast with getting acquainted with a wider variety of characters earlier.
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Comment on May 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
Durinthal (edited )LinkDurinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 2/25) Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 2/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick...Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD (Custom, 2/25)
Durinthal's Undiagnosed ADHD Custom bingo 2/25 Why did I buy that? Earliest Unplayed Thing Just Chill One-Heart Event Eight-Heart Event Quick Pick RNGesus Take the Wheel Genki Boys Finally Fantasy Four
✅ Final Fantasy IVLove in the Air v0.2.0 Maru's Events Schedules for Abigail/Leah JM8 and Ludo Super Robot Wars Never Ends First-Person Shooter Sam's Events Hard Games Siffrin's Been Waiting Five-Heart Event Three-Heart Event Supergiant Please Most Recent Purchase
✅ RavenswatchBase Builder Seven-Heart Event Visual Novels Take Forever One of the themes here is unfinished business with a few cards targeting specific games rather than picking them on a whim, and that's where I'm getting started this month.
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Comment on Announcing the Backlog Burner event for May 2026: Shrink your unplayed games list this coming month! in ~games
Durinthal Link ParentI'll second Donkey Kong Country and add Mega Man X and Fire Emblem.I'll second Donkey Kong Country and add Mega Man X and Fire Emblem.
I just finished a reread of Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir and started on Harrow the Ninth (also a reread). I first read both of them around the time Harrow came out so I wanted a refresher before finally getting to the third volume in the series and Harrow in particular is anything but straightforward, fun times.