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Dillon Jacoby-Rankin (202 KP) rated Wargroove in Video Games

Jan 18, 2020 (Updated Jan 18, 2020)  
Wargroove
Wargroove
2018 | Strategy
Turn Based Strategy (7 more)
Various Unit Types
Expandable
Player Count
Map and Campaign Creation
Unlockables
Online Play
Crossplatform
Advanced Wars Refresh!
If you have ever played Advanced Wars in the past, get ready for a refresh and a brand new experience. This game takes Advanced Wars and blows it out of the water.
Turn Based Strategy: The game brings back classic turn Based strategy that we have all come to know and love.
Various Unit Types: There are so many unita u. This game. Ground, Air, and Water types make the strategy as simple or complex as you want depending on the maps and style you want to play. Great for many different play styles and friends.
Player Count: Although you can only add up to 4 human players, the max the game plays is 8 if you include AI's. Therefore you could totally do a 4 vs. 4 with your friends on one team and the AI on the other. So 8 total, 4 human players
Expandable: The game is setup fine as is but has the capability to be added onto constantly whether it be new maps, units, commanders, etc. By the way. First free dlc update adds new units and commanders in February 2020. So if you don't have the game yet, enjoy the free dlc bonus next month when you get the game.
Unlockables: Beating the campaign will unlock you new commanders. So will earning a certain amount of stars for each of the missions you clear in the campaign, as well as various other things you may need to complete. All in all, there should be 3 commanders to unlock in the game.
Map and Campaign Creation: All the tools used to build the in game campaign are actually available to the player community to build your own maps and campaigns that can be shared and downloaded online. These maps are also crossplatform as well as the whole game. So I can make a map or campaign on one platform and you can download it on another. And then we can play said map on two different platforms at the same time with each other. It's great!
Online Play: Works great and is also crossplatform.
Crossplatform: Game is currently crossplatform on Nintendo Switch, PS, XBOX, and PC.
  
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Improper Mage
Improper Mage
Taylor Westwood | 2022 | Paranormal, Romance
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
IMPROPER MAGE is the first book in a new series by a new author, Taylor Westwood.

In a world similar to our own, Liana lives in Triaedian - a land where shifters, vampires, and mages all live in harmony?! As a female, she doesn't have many options, and the only magic she is supposed to know is how to help with her household. Luckily for us, Liana is not content with that and learns as much as she can by herself, being a strong and proficient mage, even if she can never show it.

One night she meets Damien, the King of Triaedian, who is fascinated by her. He has ruled alone for some time but, maybe, it is time for him to find his Queen. Liana is flattered until she finds out he has expressed interest in two others as well. Then she feels betrayed and played.

The interaction between these two is brilliant. Liana is seen as an 'odd' one in that she doesn't abide by society's rules for what a woman should do. Damien sees this and doesn't seem to want to change her, delighting in who she is. The attraction is hot and immediate but, once again due to society's rules, they are forbidden to act upon it until they are married. They do push the boundaries and have one particularly steamy moment, but will he marry her or one of the others?

I found the world-building to be brilliant, giving me enough information to see how the world worked without overloading me all at once. I also adored the hidden depths of others characters that sneaked through every so often. There is an overall story arc here so don't expect a HEA ending. What you do get is a fantastic ending that will definitely leave you wanting more.

I immediately went onto the author's website to see if there was any indication of when the next book was due out. For a debut book, this was amazing and I loved every word. Highly recommended by me!!

ps - and if you find out when Improper Queen is due out before me, please let me know! I need it!!

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Once Upon a Dream (Mystic Beach #1) by Aislinn Archer
Once Upon a Dream (Mystic Beach #1) by Aislinn Archer
Aislinn Archer | 2022 | Paranormal, Romance
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
ONCE UPON A DREAM is the first full-length story in the Mystic Beach series. I first met Ellie and Hunter in their short story - Here Comes the Sun - which takes place when they are six years old. This one takes place over a longer amount of time, and they both grow and change in a number of ways.

Both of them lose their mothers and neither of their fathers will ever win a 'Father of the Year' award! Ellie - who changes her name to Brighid - is hands down my favourite. She deals with what life throws at her, loves her best friend, and does the best she can. Hunter - I love him and hate him at the same time. He's got a long way to go before I'll forgive him for how he treated both Ellie and himself. And those pathetic excuses he makes to himself just aren't going to cut it. Too many excuses and not enough thought. Being completely honest here, the longer the book went on, the more I disliked him!!!

There is enough mysticism here to keep me happy whilst definitely leaving me wanting more. In fact, that's the feeling I've got now that I've finished this story. I want - no, I NEED - more! I want to see how the paranormal becomes normal for Brighid. I want to know more about Mystic Beach. I want to know more about the guys in the band, especially Kieran! And not forgetting Mace.

The world-building - whether in Virginia, Delaware, or New York - is first class. The characters are all different and don't blend into each other. The pacing is perfect. And the part near the end in New York? Had me in tears! Good on Brighid for showing backbone though and doing what was best for her. Still had me in tears though.

A fantastic book that I thoroughly enjoyed and can't wait for the next one. Highly recommended by me.

PS - LOVED the Robin of Sherwood references!!!

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 12, 2022
  
The Other Woman
The Other Woman
Sandie Jones | 2018 | Thriller
9
8.3 (15 Ratings)
Book Rating
Beware of Pammie
Holy. Mother. (yup I said it)

The moment I get into the first third of the book I had to keep going. I had to finish this book and see what will happen next. It was one thing after another and you were just waiting for who was going to snap first.

There’s a lot of tension and the mood is high strung. It’s like as if you’re near someone sensitive and you’re walking on eggshells. It’s that tense. The plot is quick and fast as you watch Emily put up with Pammie and her behavior. You feel angry towards Adam who seems to be a spineless dolt and just bows to Pammie’s whims little do you know there’s a bomb ready to drop at the very end and you just weren’t ready when it happens. It’s extremely well written and the revelation at the end is also well done. When it is revealed, you start to realize everything falls into place. It’s certainly an eye opener.

Character wise, I found it hard to like any of them. Pammie, well she’s not your favorite mother in law now is she? Adam isn’t any better. Emily would be 50/50 as there were times when I was rooting for her when she finally stuck up for herself. Then the cheering would be short lived because she’s reverts back to her needy whiny persona and she let’s Pammie and Adam walk all over her. She snaps but then cowers back later. It’s frustrating. I can’t stand James because of his behavior and what he tried to do. Okay, granted it was meant as a warning, but it’s a really strange messed up way of doing so. Emily behaves like this lovesick mooncalf around him it gets annoying. If you really wanted to be with him, you can always dump Adam. Stop mooning over James like he’s Adonis when you don’t have the galls to drop Adam like a hat. (He deserves it too, by the way)

Despite the character though, the book is still an enjoyable read as the plot gets better and better with each chapter read. What you think is obvious, isn’t and there’s a reason why everything was done. Now granted, it’s a very messed up way of doing so. But it still makes for great reading.

Greatly recommended. Certainly going to be one of my favorite reads of 2018.

PS: Every woman needs friends like Seb and Pippa.
  
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) created a post

Sep 23, 2020  
Power Moves Out Of Necessity



An Essay On The Recent Acquisition of Zenimax Media and Bethesda Studios by Microsoft


Before this week it looked like Sony could do no wrong as they made the final sprint towards the release of their next gen system. It’s funny how quickly things can change in a week.

 First there was the monumental fuck up that was the PS5 pre-orders, which included but are not limited to; times that pre orders are going live not being clearly stated, each retailer apparently having totally random respective times that pre orders went live and pre orders seemingly being in stock until the point when the customer goes to pay at the checkout screen when they are told, ‘sorry buddy, not today!”

 Then there were the rumours, followed swiftly by the confirmation that the PS5 will indeed NOT be backwards compatible with anything pre PS4. Why is this something that is so difficult to do? This means that plenty of your favourite games from generations past, including titans such as the classic Hitman games, Silent Hill 2, the entire MGS franchise prior to Ground Zeroes, will spend yet another generation stuck on old hardware that is getting continuously older and harder to maintain.

 For years people have been begging Sony to introduce a service similar to GamePass, which has been a huge benefit to Xbox and PC players for a while now.
They listened… sort of.
The PlayStation Plus Collection was announced which includes a meaty array of huge last gen exclusives, including Uncharted 4 and God of War. The caveat is that while GamePass includes brand new first party releases added to the service on launch, as well as a respectable back catalogue of exclusives, the PS Plus Collection does not. Apparently it is ‘not financially feasible,’ for Sony to adopt this practice.

 Following all of this, Xbox then makes one of the most industry-shaking power moves that we have seen in the last decade, by announcing that they are purchasing Zenimax Media and by extension all of the studios under that umbrella, including Bethesda Softworks, Arkane Studios, id Software, Machine Games and Tango Gameworks. Talk about kicking a guy when he’s down.

 Now before you go and place a panicked pre order on an Xbox Series X, it has been announced that not all games from these studios will be exclusive to Microsoft systems. Instead this will be something that will be decided on a case to case basis and PS exclusives Deathloop from Arkane and Ghostwire: Tokyo from Tango will still be released as exclusives on Sony’s console. However, Microsoft did spend 7.5 billion dollars on the acquisition and you can bet on the fact they are going to want something for their money. If they can manage to claim Elder Scrolls VI, or Fallout 5 as a Microsoft exclusive, it could shift a lot of the market back to Xbox. The most likely candidate in my opinion for a MS exclusive, is Bethesda’s announced new IP; Starfield. It is already highly anticipated and will most likely be a huge seller when it drops and if Sony folks can’t get their hands on it, I can see many people making the jump to Microsoft.

 I have written before about my issues with exclusivity on either side of the console war, but I also understand the industry well enough to see that it is a necessary evil and in this cut-throat market, this is a clever investment. I really appreciate Xbox making a big move like this as quite frankly they had to do something major in this vein to even be in with a chance of winning the next generation. It’s good to see that they are refusing to go down without a fight. They really need a boost like this if they want to have any chance of catching up with Sony in the next generation.

 The only hitch in this whole plan is that had they done this five years ago, - before disappointments like Prey, ESO, Wolfenstein: Youngblood and especially Fallout 76, - this would have been ten times more effective and mind-blowing. As of today, it seems more like 2 companies that are both on their respective backs trying to help each other up.

 Overall, I think this is a good thing for the industry as a whole. I think that it will drive more intense competition, which will in turn result in better games. As a gamer, I think I would be way more upset about this if I hadn’t just built a decent gaming PC where I can play any Microsoft exclusives anyway, but I still think that it will ultimately benefit the individual gamer also by forcing more competition between developers and therefore a higher standard of games. I do think that it will encourage people who were originally going to just buy a PS5 to at least consider getting both consoles. This will have an effect down the line when MS starts announcing Xbox exclusive Bethesda titles etc, but we’ll see how much of an effect it ends up having at launch.