kfwyre's recent activity
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Comment on Airframe Ultra release in ~games
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Comment on November 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentDon’t take this the wrong way, Appleby, but I love when you play games you don’t like because your criticism of them is so well-worded and compelling. Of course I want you to play games you enjoy...Don’t take this the wrong way, Appleby, but I love when you play games you don’t like because your criticism of them is so well-worded and compelling.
Of course I want you to play games you enjoy and find value in, but a big thanks for creating value for the rest of us in your writeups for when you feel that games miss the mark.
Also, now I too badly want a Cannonball Run videogame.
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Comment on November 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentOf course you’re welcome to join, Shevanel! Love your writeups and the enthusiasm. As someone who’s never played a Fieldy but would consider myself Field-curious, is there a good starting point...Of course you’re welcome to join,
Justin McElroyShevanel!Love your writeups and the enthusiasm.
As someone who’s never played a Fieldy but would consider myself Field-curious, is there a good starting point for the genre? Should I go with the OG game, or is there an indie interpretation that works well as a My First Fieldy?
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Comment on November 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentP.N.03 (GameCube) Whenever I’m looking for new games to emulate, I tend to gravitate towards the lesser-known games for systems. For some reason my eyes glaze over when I look at “best games for...P.N.03 (GameCube)
Whenever I’m looking for new games to emulate, I tend to gravitate towards the lesser-known games for systems. For some reason my eyes glaze over when I look at “best games for [system]” lists because they’re filled with games I already know about (even if I haven’t ever played most of them). But if I search “[system] hidden gems” then I want to play every single thing I find.
Is this insufferably hipster of me? Yes.
Also is using “hipster” as a term in the big 26 also insufferable? Also yes.
Anyway, P.N.03 is one of those hidden gems.
Structurally, it feels almost like a proto Returnal: a third-person sci-fi shooter based on procedurally generated maps made of the same rooms attached and rearranged in different layouts. Alternately, it feels a bit like a more robust follow-up to the dungeon sections of Mega Man Legends in which you traverse various corridors shooting hostile robots.
Each new level adds new rooms and enemies to the shuffle, and the game encourages you to, between levels, play an escalating challenge of randomized layouts of the currently unlocked rooms. Doing this unlocks currency which you keep between runs that can be used to buy items, new suits and abilities, as well as upgrade them.
We’d call it a “roguelike” by modern standards, though at the time of the game’s release (2003) that wasn’t really common parlance. I think it was ahead of its time and a clever way of delivering a campaign with a limited budget through strategic asset re-use.
Character-wise, Vanessa, the lead, gives Bayonetta vibes, being deliberately sexy and sultry in her moves. The later suits you unlock increase in their impracticality and sex appeal, which cheapens the game a bit IMO. I’m not trying to yuck anyone’s yum (like what you like!), but I encourage people to consider that it would feel a little weird if, say, Nathan Drake got progressively more scantily clad — ending the game in nothing but a speedo or chaps.
If the game is deliberately trying for something like that, I’m not necessarily opposed. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with a sexy power fantasy, but if it’s not set up well it feels unearned, and I think P.N.03 falls into that.
Interestingly enough, the game’s sultriness is what leads to my biggest complaint — not for the aforementioned reason, but based entirely on mechanics.
Vanessa’s got a full, graceful, even at times elegant moveset. When you activate a special ability, it is delivered with over-the-top smoothness and flourish. This is, admittedly, quite cool (like I said, I’m not above the appeal of a sexy power fantasy, even when this particular one doesn’t have pull for Kinsey-six me specifically).
The problem is that Vanessa can’t shoot while she moves, and vice versa. What this creates is a choppy, stop-and-go rhythm to the game in which her smooth moves are interrupted by rigid standing-in-place firing.
This complaint isn’t a dealbreaker by any means, and I’ve enjoyed the roughly 4 hours I’ve put into the game, but it’s hard to play it and not notice how much cooler the game could be if they’d found a way to mesh the movement and the combat simultaneously.
Likewise, after only four hours, the pattern of the game’s structure is starting to wear thin. Each level has approximately 15 rooms. Between story and levels, you are encouraged to play five different randomized layouts, each one harder than the last. These are skippable, but you also can’t return to them once you advance the main level, so there’s a big tradeoff if you ignore them in favor of just doing the story levels.
So, if you’re doing the intended progression to the fullest, you’ve got, approximately:
(1 story mission + 5 randomized missions) x 11 total missions x 15 rooms eachThis comes out to roughly 1000 rooms played over the course of the game. Unfortunately, there simply aren’t that many rooms, so you will see the same ones over and over and over again. The novelty of the game has worn down for me and is starting to feel too repetitious.
Of course, a common theme for when I play old games is that, had I had this game at the time, I absolutely wouldn’t have minded the repetition and even would have liked it. When a game is the only game around, it’s much easier to focus in on it and dive deep.
But now, with so many games pulling for my attention all the time, I have to have a good reason to stick with something. I’m finding myself continuing to play P.N.03 now out of a sense of obligation rather than because I want to fully see it through (especially because the game’s length feels somewhat artificially inflated via gratuitous repetition).
That said, I do like the game overall. I think it’s neat and ahead of its time. To me it fits its “hidden gem” status — a game that, while flawed, still does something interesting and delivers more than it doesn’t.
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Comment on Digital Detox discussion: November 2026 in ~life
kfwyre LinkDigital Detox Notification: This month's topic is now live. Monthly Discussion Starter: What media (books, podcasts, videos, etc.) do you recommend that portray problems with modern technology...Digital Detox Notification: This month's topic is now live.
Monthly Discussion Starter: What media (books, podcasts, videos, etc.) do you recommend that portray problems with modern technology and/or solutions to them?
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@WintherIf you would like to be added/removed from this list, please let me know.
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Digital Detox discussion: November 2026
The goal of the monthly Digital Detox topic is: to evaluate and potentially address toxic or controlling aspects of tech in ways are meaningful for you Please make this topic what you want it to...
The goal of the monthly Digital Detox topic is:
to evaluate and potentially address toxic or controlling aspects of tech in ways are meaningful for you
Please make this topic what you want it to be. There's no right or wrong way to post in it.
All people posting in this topic will be automatically added to the Digital Detox notification list. If you do NOT want to be added to the list, please let me know in your comment.
Monthly Discussion Starter: What media (books, podcasts, videos, etc.) do you recommend that portray problems with modern technology and/or solutions to them?
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Comment on Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of November 1 in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentI have 67 hours in Paint It Back. Not sure if that counts as a recommendation or a cry for help.I have 67 hours in Paint It Back.
Not sure if that counts as a recommendation or a cry for help.
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Comment on Real-life 'Truman Show' pulled from TV as it's branded 'psychological torture' in ~tv
kfwyre Link ParentThe Contestant is a really good documentary about it for anyone interested. (cc: @CannibalisticApple) It’s a tough watch.The Contestant is a really good documentary about it for anyone interested. (cc: @CannibalisticApple)
It’s a tough watch.
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Comment on GOG is hosting its first-ever GOG Showcase on November 5th in ~games
kfwyre LinkSummary of the Video (not AI generated -- I did this by hand) They plugged becoming a GOG Patron. They announced anniversary updates to the Wing Commander series. They announced the re-release of...Summary of the Video
(not AI generated -- I did this by hand)- They plugged becoming a GOG Patron.
- They announced anniversary updates to the Wing Commander series.
- They announced the re-release of Road Rash.
- They announced their new publishing arm, Retrovibe.
- They announced a new integrated social network called GOG Social. You can sign up for the beta here.
- They announced a new cross-platform version of Galaxy (including Linux and MacOS support). You can sign up for the beta here.
- They showed recorded videos from fans and game devs wishing them a happy 18th birthday.
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Comment on November 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentGlad you liked it! Maybe someday it will come off of your Steam Deck (but not today, lol). Also, with regard to your details block: Spoilers I saw that section as linking back to the game's main...Glad you liked it! Maybe someday it will come off of your Steam Deck (but not today, lol).
Also, with regard to your details block:
Spoilers
I saw that section as linking back to the game's main theme that the assumptions embedded in your perspective affect how you solve problems, so by changing your perspective you can confront problems in new and meaningful ways.
It uses the standard horror tropes to prime your perspective on that section, while your experience of moving through the level counteracts that priming. You're continually shown that the "fears" you've been trained to expect are unfounded and circumstantial. As such, I felt that section was another way that the game reinforced its central theme. I quite liked it to be honest.
Also I love your faith in education that makes you believe that we somehow have the money for computer hardware that can run Superliminal.
I'm only half serious with that by the way.
Okay maybe more than half. I have to buy my pencils for my classroom myself. 😭
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Reviews are now available for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (2026)
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Comment on Timasomo 2026: The Showcase in ~creative.timasomo
kfwyre LinkTimasomo Notification: The showcase is live! This is the final ping you will receive from me for Timasomo 2026. You will receive a one-time ping for the announcement topic of Timasomo 2027. For...Timasomo Notification: The showcase is live!
This is the final ping you will receive from me for Timasomo 2026. You will receive a one-time ping for the announcement topic of Timasomo 2027.
For those posting their work in the showcase, I strongly encourage you to also make your own topics showcasing your work in their respective tildes (e.g. ~life, ~tech, etc.). This showcase is only visible to those subscribed to ~creative.timasomo, but the wider Tildes audience will undoubtedly appreciate your efforts as well.
Also, you are more than welcome to share your projects elsewhere online. They are your projects, not Timasomo's, so share them however you see fit!
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@ZorindPlease mark this comment as noise so that the projects can be the feature of the showcase.
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Timasomo 2026: The Showcase
Timasomo 2026 is now officially complete! Over the next few days, participants will be posting their creations and efforts in this topic to showcase their work to the community. Comments and...
Timasomo 2026 is now officially complete!
Over the next few days, participants will be posting their creations and efforts in this topic to showcase their work to the community.
Comments and feedback are both welcome and encouraged.
Let these creators know what an awesome job they've done!
Creators: In posting your showcase:
- Give your project a title, and use the
#markdown to make it stand out in the showcase thread! - Link to your project in whatever way works best for it.
- If you like, give a "creator statement" that contextualizes what your project is.
- Add anything else you consider relevant! The showcase is yours!
- If you need examples, take a look at last year’s showcase.
Also, I strongly encourage you to make your own topics showcasing your work in their respective tildes (e.g. ~life, ~tech, etc.). This showcase is only visible to those subscribed to ~creative.timasomo, but the wider Tildes audience will undoubtedly appreciate your efforts as well.
Community:
- Treat this thread like a walk through an art gallery or a museum where you get to see different works on display.
- Simple appreciations for the creators are not noise—they are valuable community support!
- Make sure any feedback you give is constructive and meant to help.
31 votes - Give your project a title, and use the
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Comment on Not Solitaire in ~games
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Comment on GOG is hosting its first-ever GOG Showcase on November 5th in ~games
kfwyre LinkBluesky announcementThe first-ever GOG Showcase is almost here! Big announcements, new games and new features, all in one show.
Thursday, Nov 5 · 7 PM CET / 1 PM ET / 10 AM PT -
GOG is hosting its first-ever GOG Showcase on November 5th
15 votes -
Comment on November 2026 Backlog Burner: Week 1 Discussion in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentThis is so shady and I love it. XD I adore my little console library that (mostly) could(n’t).With a back catalog that only a Kefir could love
This is so shady and I love it. XD
I adore my little console library that (mostly) could(n’t).
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Comment on 2026 United States midterm elections distractions topic in ~talk
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Comment on 2026 United States midterm elections megathread in ~society
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Comment on 2026 United States midterm elections distractions topic in ~talk
kfwyre LinkDistractions Topic Announcement: Un-distract yourself and go check the news. I mean it, seriously. :)Distractions Topic Announcement: Un-distract yourself and go check the news.
I mean it, seriously. :)
I so badly want a new Jet Moto, but the combat focus and multiplayer-only nature of this game mean it’s, unfortunately, not going to scratch that itch for me.
Maybe the game will get big enough that they’ll add in a single-player campaign down the road. Or maybe some dedicated modders will make it happen. I don’t think either of these are particularly likely, but the actual racing in this game looks cool enough that I want to keep the dream alive. What I wouldn’t give for a Jet Moto 4…