April 2026's Humble Choice is now available with the following eight Steam games.

Does anyone have experience with any of the games and, if so, would you recommend them? Is there anything in here that you're particularly excited to play?

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I liked playing Ace Combat since I've been a kid, Ace Combat 2 was one of my favorite PS1 games alongside Crash Team Racing at the time, and I did play AC3 as well but don't remember much of it.

I completely skipped PS2 generations since I was on handhelds instead, so my first interaction with Ace Combat since 3 was ACAH(Yuck) on PS3, but I ended up buying Ace Combat 7 since that was actually a good game, but being bad at committing to one game hasn't allowed me to finish it, with AC8 being announced to come out soon, I decided I should try and focus on clearing AC7.

I never gave it a mind at the mind but since now I'm aware of what Lockheed Martin is, I noticed it when I started up the game the past few days at one of the splash screens at the start of the game, and given that Lockheed Martin's involvement with the current ongoing wars, it's safe to assume that Bandai Namco have had an agreement that most likely has had financial and monetary incentives to license their planes.

licensing weapons and arms aren't particularly a new thing afaik in games, I'm not much of an FPS person myself since I stick with Doom and Bioshock if I want a more "traditional" FPS experience (But prefer things like Ultrakill or Metal Hellsinger) and never been into CoD or other military shooters.

So depending on their license agreement, they either have paid the royalties upfront(Unaware of how licensing typically goes but I assume it's most likely to be this one?) just to have their arms in the game, or they get a portion of their sales. If it is the former then sales of the game do not directly(as in unless sequels or relicensing occur) contribute to their bottom lines, if it is the latter then every sale contributes to wars.

Posting this in places like reddit or other gamer spaces I'd imagine would elicit a "Don't bring politics to my games" kind of response.

I'm curious what Tildes users would think of this, I think that would make pirating these games or buying them secondhand(impossible on Steam though Steam family could count) be more ethical than buying them in a way, though I imagine some may advocating for separating the art from... whom the artist pays?

And so concludes Guybrush Threepwood's thrilling quest to learn the Secret of Monkey Island! He did learn it, right? The secret? Surely there was a secret learned in there, somewhere? Well... that's what you get for spending more than 20 bucks on a computer game.

What were your favorite (and least favorite) moments? Favorite puzzles? Most frustrating ones? There are, in fact, a number of SECRETS to be found in The Secret of Monkey Island! Like these:

Share your stories below. Was this your first experience with the game or a nostalgic return? How has it held up over the years, in your estimation? Timeless classic or overrated turd? Don't hold back, we can handle it. We've spoken with apes more polite than you.

So here we are at the end of another colossal month. Next up, we'll ring in the new year with @datavoid for our January 2026 play of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker! In the meantime, if you're so inclined, consider checking out the rest of the Monkey Island series:

• Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge
• The Curse of Monkey Island
• Escape From Monkey Island
• Tales of Monkey Island
• Return to Monkey Island

OK, that's it, turn off your computer and do something constructive.
Like play a little racquetball. Or wash your car. Or cook dinner. Or join a funk band. Or travel to a foreign country. Or run for president. Or talk to a member of the opposite sex. Or lube your car. Or host a weenie roast. Or dig for buried treasure. Or milk a cow. Or have a yelling contest with your neighbor's dog. Or perform brain surgery. Or paint a yellow line in the center of your driveway. Or write your name in the snow. Or teach basket weaving to clams. Or sing Welsh folk songs at the bank. Or plant trees on public property. Or confuse the person next to you. Or make a triangular table. Or hop, skip, and jump. Or ride a train. Or organize your sock drawer alphabetically. Or go bowling with your mom. Or train potato bugs to do tricks. Or make a quilt. Or publish a magazine about pencil shavings. Or eat lime jello with pineapple in it. Or pave a freeway. Or learn to draw. Or take up photography. Or learn to tell time. Or photocopy money. Or go out for pasta. Or sew a dress. Or bathe your iguana. Or go fishing. Or paint a stranger's house in the middle of the night. Or take up windsurfing. Or change your hair style. Or sharpen your whiteboard markers. Or feed a toucan. Or enjoy the sun. Or do a crossword puzzle. Or buy some cool clothes. Or go to the beach. Or play croquet with your dad. Or water your plants. Or build a doll house. Or invite some friends over for salmon and white wine.

See you next month!

I've had the itch lately to play Minecraft again. I originally played on an account my brother gave me in alpha and used that for years before he asked for it back so he could do the account migration in to his Microsoft account to avoid losing it. Microsoft sadly doesn't do regional pricing for Minecraft so I don't think I'll be picking up a copy again soon and will probably wait till my kids are older and I pick up some copies to play with them.

I realized that the game has changed a lot since I last played, and when last played with my friends (probably 5-6 years ago at this point) I remember being a bit lost with all the new things that had been added from when I last played. While it's cool seeing new stuff being added to the game, I also realized that if I were to get Minecraft I would probably get it specifically to play older versions of the game. I saw there was a whole subreddit of people playing older versions of the game over at r/GoldenAgeMinecraft which also showed me that there are mods that essentially fork development from earlier points in Minecraft's history which I think would be cool to explore when I do get the game.

I was curious if any tilders play older versions of Minecraft?
What draws you to that particular version?
Do you play the current release version of Minecraft at all?

Also, anything older Minecraft you felt like sharing, please do. I've been watching some older Minecraft videos on Youtube in my second monitor while I work today.

Edit: I wanted to add this here since I found this out after posting. It turns out that Minecraft's Java edition has a demo mode, and the check for how long you've played the demo mode was added in release version 1.3. So I can go ahead and create a demo account and play the old versions for Free: https://minecraft.fandom.com/wiki/Demo_Mode#Trivia
I do plan on buying the full game eventually, but this will definitely scratch the itch I've been having for a long time and I will look at installing that on my computer once I've tackled my big work items.

Edit 2: I found that you can use the Betacraft launcher to access these older versions as well. I wish I had found that previously as I spent a solid ~30 minutes fiddling with my Win 10 LTSC computer getting the Windows Store and other services installed and it still wasn't letting me properly launch the old Minecraft versions.

switches to an emotional ending music

Once upon a time, in the sun-dappled realm of Millefeuille, a tale of courage, folly, and friendship came to a close. After enduring countless trials born of pride and greed, our gallant yet hapless Prince of Sablé has reached the end of his journey.

It all began when the Prince learned that the radiant Princess Tiramisu had vanished, spirited away just after his umpteenth defeat in a duel against the ever-boastful Prince Richard. Barred from sailing beside his rival, our humble hero took to the road alone, his purse light and his hopes heavy. What he lacked in fortune, he made up for in heart (and the occasional odd purchase).

Along the way, he fell for a trickster's promise, a ludicrously-expensive potion said to restore his human form "at any time", though bound by more strings than a puppet show. In his kindness, he even repaid the damages wrought upon Saltwater Town, tossing a mountain of Nuts to a boy whose gratitude shone brighter than gold.

Though tempted by greed and misled by pride, the Prince of Sablé's heart remained pure. Through tangled mazes and fierce foes he pressed on, never losing sight of his mission to rescue Tiramisu. By the end, even the proud Richard bowed his head, moved by the Prince's resolve to fight without malice and spare his old rival from needless harm in their final duel.

Yet behind every fairytale lies a clever twist. For while our Prince was chasing glory, he unwittingly became a key piece in the grand design of Polnareff's scheme to save Millefeuille from the sly serpent Delarin. His bravery, fuelled more by sincerity than wisdom, turned the tide at last.

And where was the Princess, you ask? Why, she was by his side all along! In disguise as the wise witch Mandola, Tiramisu guided her beloved Prince more times than he ever realized. Perhaps he should have noticed the resemblance in their mannerisms a bit sooner.

And as our story fades to its final act, the air fills not with solemn silence but with the rhythm of celebration, a raucous DJ's beat spun by a mad scientist in his whirring metal giant. A strange ending, perhaps, but a joyous one all the same.

So then, dear travellers, as the curtain falls on this comical and heartfelt adventure, let us gather 'round and share our thoughts on the tale of The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls, a story where even the smallest frog may leap into legend. I'll start.

The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls feels less like a traditional video game and more like an interactive storybook, something remarkably ahead of its time for the early '90s. The combat, platforming, and puzzle segments are kept simple on purpose, serving as stepping stones for the charming storytelling that carries the whole adventure.

Battles play out automatically when you bump into an enemy strong enough to challenge you, with the outcome depending on your stats like HP, attack, defense, and speed (plus whatever items you might have on hand). It's a good idea to keep your health up and hunt for stat-boosting items if you want to make steady progress.

A sprinkle of puzzles and light platforming keeps things fresh, and the ability to switch between forms adds some fun variety, the strong human, the amphibious and nimble frog who can breathe underwater, and the slinky snake who can turn some foes into stepping blocks.

Sure, none of these mechanics are deep by modern standards, but their simplicity works in the game's favor. It keeps the spotlight on the story, one that explores how kindness, greed, and good intentions can intertwine in unexpected ways. It's funny, heartfelt, and often downright ridiculous in the best way possible.

While I might not revisit this one as often as other Nintendo classics, I'm glad I played it. Not only is it interesting to see where Link's Awakening borrowed a few ideas (and a certain prince!), but it's also worth it for the humor alone.

As I make more progress in Cure Dolly's Japanese lessons, I might even try the original version one more time someday. Who knows what little translation quirks or cultural touches I've missed?

That about wraps it up for this month's game. Our time in the whimsical world of the Millefeuille Kingdom may be over, but the adventure continues.

Next time, u/vili takes us on a trip to outer space aboard an overly complicated spaceship, hopefully with fewer spacetime mishaps... but no promises.

Until then, jot down your thoughts and memories; no moment of gaming glory deserves to be forgotten!

THE END

(sorry for my rookie attempt at photographing this screen in real life!)

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Looking Back on Temple of Elemental Evil

My table wrapped up T1-T4 Temple of Elemental Evil a few months ago, and I decided to take a break before moving on to I6 Ravenloft to play some video games for a bit. It's a good thing, too, because there's been several hospitalizations and deaths so far this year, but that's a topic for elsewhere.

After having finished it, I can confidently say that I don't really get all the hype T1-T4 gets in this day and age. Perhaps when it was new, but I still see people today lauding its greatness. It was... fine. T1 had a very strong start, no real complaints there, but as the book went on it meandered more and left a lot to be desired in the third and especially fourth floors of the dungeon. I've heard rumors that Gygax was unable to finish it in time due to being pulled away for TSR business often, so he gave all his notes to Mentzer to complete the work. I would believe it, personally. I've also since been told that the campaign book has an errata, so perhaps that fixes a lot of our issues with it, but I've not read it; no real interest in running this again.

The Upcoming Ravenloft Run

Moving past that, though, we'll be starting back up on April 11th with the group's first batch of characters going to the castle representing Ravenloft to have dinner with the Count; some of them received a letter inviting them over to congratulate them on their work within the region and on the power they've gained. The players know what they're getting into, but the characters don't. Joining us this go around are:

• Rowan Human Magic-User 7 (~66k XP)
  • Henchman Freya, Human Fighter 5 (~18k XP)
  • Henchman Rikka, Human Fighter 5 (~18k XP)
• Iskandar, Human Magic-User 8 (~106k XP)
  • Henchman Thorgisl, Human Fighter 2 (~2k XP)
• Ser Duncan, Human Paladin 6 (~55k XP)
• Melceth, Human Cleric 7 (~55k XP)
• Elowyn, Elf Fighter 5 / Magus 5 (~55k XP)

Looking Ahead to the New World

Regardless of what the results of the Ravenloft module are, there will then be a time skip of a couple or few years before a portal to a new setting, Jovian, will be made available to the group; a planet with two suns--a very large, incredibly bright one representing Bahamut and a much smaller, dimmer one representing Tiamat--that is bathed in an eternal twilight. Two major themes I aim to hit with this setting are reclamation and perseverance.

To go along with the change in setting, I am also planning on making other changes to the game. We are:

• finally getting rid of the gnome
• retaining the half-ogre
• adding the mul, which are a half-human/half-dwarf race from Dark Sun
• removing the Assassin class
• adding the Runecaster class
• replacing the base Cleric class with a specialty priest for each of our 17 deities
• allowing halflings to be Illusionist in the absence of the gnome
• allowing mul to be Occultists, a custom class of my making
• allowing half-orcs to be a Magus, another custom class of my making, in the absence of the Assassin

Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

Rules:

• No grey market sales
• No affiliate links

If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.

All previous Save Point topics

If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

Rules:

• No grey market sales
• No affiliate links

If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.

All previous Save Point topics

If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

Schedule

Discussion Topics

Each month will have two discussion topics:

• "Insert Cartridge" - 1st of the month
• "Remove Cartridge" - 28th of the month (25th for February)

Insert Cartridge topics are primarily for getting the game set up and running. Remove Cartridge topics are primarily for reflecting on the game once you've played it. However, the game itself and anything else related to it can be discussed in either one.

Hosting

Each month, the discussion topics will be posted by a different "host" who will act as the emcee for that month.

Hosting is not required, but it is encouraged that people host months for games that they are either already very familiar with or that they are strongly interested in playing.

People who nominated a game will be given preference for hosting, otherwise it will be given to whomever claims it first.

Check out old months to get a feel for what it's like.

If you would like to host a month, let me know which one and I will add you to the schedule.

Before your month begins, I will send you a "Hosting Package" featuring templates that you can edit to your liking.

If no one claims a month, I will host it as a fallback.

Voting Results

The top 6 games from the voting round were chosen to be played.

Of the remaining games:

• The top 50% will advance to the next round. They will start the next round with a base score of 30% of their vote totals.
• The bottom 50% will be removed from the list.

Removed games will be able to be re-nominated in future rounds if someone chooses to do so.

I'm currently 20 hours and 4 "episodes" deep into Death Stranding 2 on PC and I don't have the patience to wait til the Monday megathread rolls around again to voice my thoughts. This isn't my first time playing a Kojima game; I've got over 100 hours in the first Death Stranding and I've also finished multiple entries in the Metal Gear series, I've even played Boktai 2 on the GBA (though I didn't know that was a Kojima game til much later). I enjoy the vision, wackiness, flexibility in gameplay, and emphasis on little details that are fairly characteristic of a Kojima game, and those things are definitely very present in this one as well. That said though, there is one thing that only becomes more and more clear as I progress:

Hideo Kojima is terrible at writing dialogue. By that, I don't mean characters fail to express themselves or convey ideas well through a lack of words; rather, they're entirely too reliant on words. In an era of cinema that loves "show, don't tell", Kojima leans more towards "tell, tell, tell some more, and then maybe have a bit more tell as a treat". Any character with a backstory that Kojima wants you to know about will spend a good 10 minutes unloading their life story almost as soon as they meet the main character. Any time there's a new piece of information being revealed, someone will explain it to you in textbook-level depth. I'm not sure if Kojima thinks that it's ok to have so many incredibly long exposition-dumping cutscenes in his game because the ratio of cutscene to game is still fairly low but all I can say is these cutscenes and talking sequences are not good cinema. I don't care which movie star is getting a cameo when the script itself is this absurdly poor, my immersion is shattered and watching has now become a chore.

That said though, it's not like the game is devoid of cinematic moments, they just happen to be entirely outside of the cutscenes themselves. By far the most memorable and impactful moments in this game and the original are those times of solitude during a delivery where you're just quietly traversing through a zone, luggage in tow, and a Low Roar track starts playing. It's during these moments of calm, of pure show and no tell at all, where the player gets truly immersed in the role of the main character and has time to contemplate their journey while taking in the beauty of the nature around them. These aren't accidental or purely player-driven moments, those songs are set to play at a particular place during certain missions and knowing Kojima, he definitely had a major role in directing these as well. So it's not like he doesn't know how to create absolute cinema, but at the same time it's limited purely to gameplay moments where you're not forced to listen to someone deliver a 10 minute monologue in a way that no actual human being talks.

So yeah, thanks for not becoming a movie director, Kojima. Your script writing's terrible but your gameplay ideas are great. I'd suggest you hire an editorial team but you probably already have and ignore them.

I have a bare bones prototype of a game made in twine and I will be honest it needs a lot of work.

The story and main architecture of the game is already planned and I am happy with it. It is the story hooks and pathing that I am looking to improve and for that I would like to give out a early Alpha build for volunteers to critique and provide any dead ends, errors and story beats they find engaging.

Please feel free to send a message if you would like to participate. Thank you for your time.

Edit: Thank you for your interest in the game the final build should be ready for volunteers in one week. I will send links to you directly at that time. Thank you again for your interest this is much better than I hoped for.

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Has anyone solved the Wordle at wordleunlimited.org today? I just got the answer on my first try, which seems unlikely to say the least. I think it could be a malfunction. Would anyone mind posting the answer under a spoiler box so I can check? Thanks!

Update: Thanks, folks! It seems like the site uses a different word for each person. It also seems like it's working fine. So, go me! Or it was a one-off problem. My word was AUDIT, btw.