Skylanders Killed My Steam Games

I have been getting too many Skylanders figurines of late that I don't even have extra cash available for the games I wanted from Steam. The good news here is that I am almost finish with my Trap Team ensemble - and can you believe that I am only one figurine away from completing the Swap Force character list? Yes, perhaps this is getting out of hand. Last night, the husband asked me how many Skylanders figurines I have and when I told him, he was like "Wow, you have spent that much on those dolls?" He may be right. I think that this may be the last time I ever participate in a Skylanders game. The next one has to be really really really interesting to have me invested again because I think I am ready to retire when it comes to this series just so that I can spend my money on other games. Oh, I have 3 more of them coming today too. Galaxy help me.

Can you spot the new additions?

My latest Trap Masters look mighty awesome.

Games Played 04/13/2015 - 04/19/2015

- 04/13/2015 -
Grand Theft Auto V - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC

Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition - PC/PlayStation 4
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria - PC

- 04/14/2015 -
Grand Theft Auto V - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Mortal Kombat X - PC

- 04/15/2015 -
Grand Theft Auto V - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Mortal Kombat X - PC

- 04/16/2015 -
Grand Theft Auto V - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Mortal Kombat X - PC

- 04/17/2015 -
Grand Theft Auto V - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Mortal Kombat X - PC
Tomodachi Life - 3DS

- 04/18/2015 -
Dungeon of the Endless - PC
Endless Legend - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Mortal Kombat X Premium Edition - PC

- 04/19/2015 -
Dungeon of the Endless - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC


Screenshot of the Week:

Nope, not in there either...
Mortal Kombat X (Personal Computer)

My Final Club Nintendo Reward

With Club Nintendo closing down this year, we knew it was eventual ever since the quality of the yearly rewards for Elite status members went downhill soon after its inception, I didn't have the motivation to get to the Platinum level for this final go-round and only hit Gold but after seeing this year's reward selections, I sure wished that I got there: I would have loved claiming that digital copy of Punch-Out!! for the Wii U. I ended up opting for the classic Super Mario Kart for the Wii U. Goodbye Club Nintendo. You just weren't meant to last (please release your games on Steam already and make tons of money, Nintendo!). By the way, I still had 380 Nintendo Gold left so I used them to purchase 3D Classics: TwinBee  (150 NG) and Wario Land 2 (200 NG), both for the Nintendo 3DS. I feel sad about that 30 NG balance though.

It's a shame this whole thing ended with a whimper.

Wasted, unused gold.

Since I was meddling with my Wii U today, I decided to turn on my long dormant Nintendo 3DS as well only to discover that Nintendo was selling themes for the system's dashboard. I love this idea and even though I could just stick with the free but generic black theme, I decided to spent my $1.99 on the Yoshi's Springtime Siesta theme. It looks cute enough and as a Yoshi fan, I found it to be worth it. Now when can we expect to be able to buy new themes to replace that boring default Wii U dashboard, Nintendo?

I love this theme.

Gaming without Twitch

It has been almost two weeks since I have stopped broadcasting my gameplay to twitch.tv and even though I have been coincidentally sick throughout most of the aforementioned timeline, I must say that I have been enjoying myself a lot more than I ever did before when playing my games. The things that always bothered me when I broadcast to Twitch was the back-seating and the people who couldn't help to impose spoilers into the chat whether directly or indirectly. Sure, I always wished to have someone to interact with me while playing my games, preferably my husband, but for the most part, the types of interaction I got while broadcasting were just annoying. Instead of commenting on what happens on the screen, they would comment on the upcoming part of the game and instead of reacting with you, they proactively set you up for that reaction. When I visit other channels, I like to focus on the broadcaster instead of the game. What this means is that I tend to get personal with the broadcaster, like asking about his or her life - nothing too personal of course - or the motivation behind a gameplay action while of course reacting with him or her with the things that are happening on screen. I would never comment on something the broadcaster is doing wrong in a game that I have played before unless I am specifically asked to do so. Even then, I sometimes don't even reveal too much details on what to do but instead just basic clues for him or her. But I understand now that twitch is not the place for thoughtful gaming companionship.

Twitch is a curious dichotomy because it takes away from full immersion to your

gaming time as a viewer while demanding others to do the same while being a broadcaster.

There was a broadcaster whom I thought was personable and interesting who had a small viewership and shared my own broadcasting values. Then one day, I saw with my very own eyes a light bulb went on above his head when suddenly he noticed that people stayed and watched when he allowed them to tell him what to do with the games he was playing and thus, he abandoned the no back-seating and no spoiler policy even though those things were still listed on his channel and even sometimes, his stream title. I stopped watching of course because I can't interact with him anymore since whenever I opened the chat, it was clogged with back-seating activities and people trying to hint spoilers to him. These acts were never punished so I was done. I am happy to have left Twitch and I believe that I have made the right decision. There were a number of times when the broadcast itch came back and I wanted to at least use Steam Broadcasting but I knew that I was asking for trouble. You see, unless you are playing in a tournament watch by millions, I now believe that live gameplay only belongs to the player and his or her closest friends. It just doesn't work with random strangers on the Internet. It's just not meaningful whatsoever. Perhaps when I have accumulated enough close gaming friends, then the broadcasting adventure can thus begin anew. But I seriously doubt that would ever happen.


Update Note - 04/26/2015: I am back on twitch.tv again. I know, I messed up. I am only human. I am approaching streaming more carefully this time around and remind myself of the benefits it provides me - the easy DVR-like functionality of potential interesting gameplay moments, both in terms of recording and editing. I hope this will all work out for me in the end.

Games Played 04/06/2015 - 04/12/2015

- 04/06/2015 -

Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Ring Runner: Flight of the Sages - PC

- 04/07/2015 -
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC

- 04/08/2015 -
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC

- 04/09/2015 -
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Last Knight: Rogue Rider Edition - PC
My French Coach - NDS

- 04/10/2015 -
Deadly 30 - PC
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Last Knight: Rogue Rider Edition - PC

- 04/11/2015 -
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Strife Early Access - PC

- 04/12/2015 -
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta - PC
Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition - PC
Skylanders Swap Force - PlayStation 4
Skylanders Trap Team - PlayStation 4


Screenshot of the Week:

Not a lot of games played this week because I have been really sick.
Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (Personal Computer)