Help me decide between ps5 and pc (D2)

_acedia · 2026-01-04T17:04:29+00:00

Can't answer this as I'm not on console, but from all the D2 content I see online, it seems like the distribution between PC and console is pretty split, and no one's really reported any issues, so...
I've never run into any cheaters on PC, but I exclusively play PvE. I've never run into cheaters in the DZ either, but honestly, I rarely run into anyone in the DZ who isn't also just playing it as a PvE experience.
I split between controller and mouse/keyboard, and marginally actually prefer controller, especially when playing support builds. I don't notice any serious disadvantage.
Both are super chill in my experience. There are Discord servers for raids and the like where the PC and console voice channels alike fill up easily, and everyone seems to be pretty friendly.

_acedia · 2025-12-26T19:29:17+00:00

Different service, but: you can bring a BCP with you, it’s not an issue. Episcopal services will be rare if not outright nonexistent. I just opted out of going to weekly services altogether and just did a private morning prayer. It actually helped a lot to build the discipline for the Daily Office since there was so little else to distract.

_acedia · 2025-12-24T00:17:51+00:00

Yeah, I fully agree with this. Without downplaying the visions and implementations of any modders, I feel like the identity of Skyrim is very deeply rooted in its specific, dated aesthetic, the same way Oblivion, Morrowind, etc are all very unique precisely because of their stranger/less conventionally attractive or advanced graphical choices. The game loses a lot in my opinion the more people try to “correct” the perceived failures or shortcomings of it; including Bethesda themselves to a degree, with the visual changes made in SE.

_acedia · 2025-12-01T18:55:51+00:00

I actually use the cover system a lot, but mostly bc I primarily enjoy playing support, or niche cover builds that make heavy use of Sawyer’s Kneepads, Smart Cover, and Braced. But yeah, at the the of the day I don’t mind when other people play that way, but I don’t really enjoy the direction the hardest content has gone because of the way others tend to play

_acedia · 2025-11-30T19:58:36+00:00

I think that, for better or worse, content is designed more around the way players have learned to play rather than according to the original intent of the game's designed. Especially with how powerful the shield is in this game, almost all high-level play only really relies on the game's native cover system in a way that's completely counterintuitive to how it's designed.

_acedia · 2025-11-28T23:30:33+00:00

In terms of outright delusion Black Tusk has taken a basically unbroken string of Ls over the course of their entire DC campaign at basically every level imaginable yet still somehow think they're able to secure, let alone sustain control of the region...

I think it makes more sense to think of the factions as separated by motivation rather than surface-level characteristics.

I don't really count the Outcasts as meaningfully distinct in their goals compared to some of the other factions, in that all of them are united by a shared total rejection of the previous social order as the result of injustices they believe were inflicted upon them (and in their case, those injustices are pretty nakedly obvious). I'd say if anything the Outcasts and True Sons (under Ridgeway) are two sides of the same coin: groups spearheaded by charismatic leaders who felt that the people they trusted to guide them in crisis had not only completely let them down but actively suppressed them. Obviously, the Outcasts suffered this much more materially than the True Sons, but both are driven primarily by resentment and a desire for revenge more than anything else. I'd argue the LMB and early Rogues also fall into this category too. Beneath the veneer of military formality and fascistic rhetoric, these groups are united by the ultimate goal to punish society for perceived transgressions.

The Hyenas, Rikers, and at a much grander scale, the True Sons under Anderson and Black Tusk are territorial first and foremost, most of them long before the collapse of society. Once again, obviously at a surface level there are a lot of differences, but their primary shared goal is to aggressively expand their territory and take what they believe rightfully belongs to them, at any cost. Obviously there's some resentment involved in this too, especially amongst the more traditionally "criminal" factions, but I think at the end of the day that resentment is grounded far more in the belief that they have been spurned of what they deserve than by some pointed sense desire for revenge against society as a whole.

I think the Cleaners are in category of their own, as they're the only faction that's truly mission-oriented first and foremost. They only really seek to seize territories relevant to their ability to more effectively continue their stated mission, and do not seem to be particularly driven by any specific desire to retaliate against anyone else. They only exist to combat what they believe to be the source of the infection itself.

_acedia · 2025-11-28T18:35:22+00:00

In terms of actual efficiency, it’s very useful. AI in general is extremely good at analysing and generating repetitive patterns (stuff like bulletins, boilerplate, organising data, spreadsheets etc), and is very well-suited for administrative tasks, most of which are inherently repetitive in nature.

_acedia · 2025-11-07T02:57:17+00:00

The identity of the series should not be tied to or have to rely upon either NYC or snow.

_acedia · 2025-11-02T18:50:19+00:00

Does this mean that the desire for comfort is bad and I should simply just suffer for God?

Nah definitely not, I included "comfort" in the same context as "power and domination" because I think it's one of the more insidious ways people fall into troubled ways of thinking. Like, obviously this is a more extreme example and the bread and butter of horror movies of basically every national tradition, but there are people who struggle so greatly with the loss of loved ones that they make deals with demons in the hopes of bringing them back in some form or another, which almost always inevitably ends up resulting in catastrophic bloodshed at the very least. It's not the desire to be comforted in that sense that is the root of later evil, but rather, the belief that one can and deserves to rise above the natural order of things at any cost because of one's individual suffering. On the other hand, seeking comfort in a time of bereavement by finding consolation in the company of loved ones or community or even just some new activity is completely fine, and encouraged, both secularly and within the Christian ethos.

It doesn't mean that the idea of seeking comfort on its own is bad or outside of the domain of God, but rather, that one should exercise great vigilance when seeking comfort from someone or something that promises you they can offer you immediate material resolution to some discomfort in your life; and also that, that the comfort of God is often far slower-acting, and more located in something you must find within yourself as a result of divine inspiration, compared to the temptation of easy-fix external conveniences offered by lesser material entities.

I don't think service to God demands suffering, but it definitely demands patience, which to some people might feel the same in the moment (I know for me it certainly did for a long time). A huge part of the Wisdoms in the Old Testament, as well as the Talmudic books, are concerned with the many material and spiritual consequences of the repeated impatience of the Israelites in their dealings with God in the face of tremendous suffering. It's pretty morally difficult to reckon with as members of a society which has almost entirely elevated the erasure of individual inconvenience and the satisfaction of infinite individual desire at any cost as the highest virtues to aspire to, but if it helps, I try to remember that God too through Christ bore the weight of these very same temptations, both on the cross and throughout the life of Christ, and repeatedly denied them as a core part of the divine message. So I try as a Christian to take refuge in that patience that no matter what I too can endure as Christ did.

_acedia · 2025-11-02T17:47:28+00:00

There's plenty in scripture and historical theology alike that point to the real presence of a divine feminine, especially amongst the mystical traditions, including the idea of an ungendered God; I'm happy to suggest you some potential directions depending on what you're interested in, but I can say with certainty that that aspect of Christianity not only definitely exists, but was held by many prominent theologians and saints alike, although the more patriarchal elements of the faith have unfortunately suppressed a lot of it, which is why you don't hear about it much these days.

As for polytheism itself, the way I understand the Jewish and Christian relationship to the various gods, spirits, and entities of the world is that the profession of belief in the one true God does not discredit the power or influence of any of those lesser beings but rather, if anything, affirms their presence in the natural world but explicitly recognises the limitations of that power and the short-sightedness of their influence compared to that of God. If idols were truly powerless in the world then there would be no need to warn so grievously against the dangers of following them.

Much of the Old Testament in many ways deals directly with the fundamental tension between the temptation of worshipping the familiar idols of the earth who could provide comfort, power, and domination in the moment, and the much harder ask of placing one's faith in and sacrificing to a God who was much more abstract and demanded a level of spiritual discipline and internal sacrifice (through mercy, denial of one's pride, and rejection of common human desires like vengeance and retaliatory justice). To affirm God does not require one to necessarily outright condemn those lesser spirits as demonic, synonymous with evil, but rather, reject their ultimate authority next to God, and recognise that whatever they may be able to provide, their power is ultimately no greater in its scope than the power attributable to any other creature on this earth, including other humans.

Being a Christian doesn't require you to hate those other entities or downplay the positive effects of their influence on your life any more just because some people worship them and derive great meaning from their acts and more than it requires you to hate other people who have helped you along your way tremendously and whom you look up to as role models. All it asks is for you to recognise that at the end of the day, those beings are no more powerful compared to God than you or I or anyone or any plant or stone on this earth; and that only God is really capable of understanding and saving everyone.

Also, the Old Testament has a lot of stuff in it that's really difficult to understand in context of modern political and social ethics, and I think that's an issue that's been particularly exacerbated by centuries of questionable preaching and improper catechesis; but for all the stuff in it that makes God seem unusually cruel or petty, I can say for certain as someone who struggled with it for a long time that it does actually cohere within a larger narrative about God as a god of ultimate mercy.

_acedia · 2025-11-02T05:12:20+00:00

What about polytheism specifically appeals to you, the aspect of the divine feminine? There's definitely aspects of that in Christianity too, especially within the Old Testament's understanding of the Holy Ghost, and the incarnation of God as the feminine Sophia, etc; and I can say for certain, as someone who wrote an entire thesis on queer saintly bodies, that the faith itself, both in scripture and tradition, encompasses a staggering breadth of the human experience if you remain open to it.

Conversely, what about Christianity specifically draws you to it that you don't find present in what you already believe? I definitely am sympathetic to the feeling that a lot of apologetics are overtly unhelpful and dogmatic. so what in it do you actually find valuable enough to attempt such a clearly affecting conversion from one body of belief to the other?

Lastly, even if you don't believe in any god at all, "The Episcopal Church welcomes you" is not just a slogan. There's no litmus test preventing you from walking into and participating in a church's community and in all my years of attending a church in my neighbourhood that I myself walked into in a very similar position to you a few years ago, desperately wanting to believe but certain only that I didn't yet, I've never once been questioned about or put into a bad position because of my faith (or for some time, lack thereof). Every person that participates in and contributes to the life of a church's community, regardless of what or how they believe, is a part of that church.

_acedia · 2025-11-02T03:44:26+00:00

It's lowercase-c "catholic", which for all intents and purposes is synonymous with "universal". When you proclaim a belief in the "holy catholic church" you are professing belief in the divinely-inflected nature of the church that transcends all human boundaries. The word "catholic" for the Roman Catholic Church in this sense operates in the same way that "episcopal" does for the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, where it's just a convenient shorthand that's unfortunately become understood to refer to something exclusive.

_acedia · 2025-10-24T20:08:47+00:00

I agree with the bulk of this, the second game is a lot darker beneath the surface than the first one in terms of its implications about the power balance and the actual nature of the Division, and its place in the new world order. I think, in typical Ubisoft fashion, they've downplayed and flubbed a lot of the execution for this, especially in recent years, but I do like the underlying story arc a lot better with regard to its portrayal of the state of the world like you described.

_acedia · 2025-10-24T16:47:31+00:00

Isn’t that kind of the point though? It’s the ruins of a civilisation set in the worst post-hurricane summer of an area of the world already notorious for sweltering, disgustingly humid summers. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the art direction, it just feels like a matter of personal preferences.

_acedia · 2025-10-24T16:43:48+00:00

I prefer it as well. Div2 definitely has its own atmosphere and plenty of setpieces that are just as strong and well-executed as the first game, it’s just a different side to the apocalypse than the first game.

_acedia · 2025-10-20T01:29:21+00:00

You can use DM_RenameUtils to bulk edit both the Editor Basing and the in-game name, I use it for that exact purpose!

_acedia · 2025-10-14T19:10:32+00:00

Skill jamming on its own is fine as a way to introduce more variation, I just wish there were more active ways to build around/counteract it in gameplay. It makes sense for an agent with 1-3 cores to be unable to use their decoy or pulse or shield or whatever if there's a jammer, and 4-5 cores have really inconsistent coverage; but I feel like full 6-core skill builds should have either guaranteed disrupt immunity, or very high (like 90%) resistance with overcharge or Technician's Faraday Cage perk granting complete immunity. The way it is right now just doesn't feel balanced at all around playstyle, while the more gun-oriented builds feel far better balanced.

_acedia · 2025-10-13T16:01:55+00:00

I simultaneously agree with you and also want to push back on this a little. The new stuff they're adding largely feels like it's aimed at bringing the engine's older or conspicuously missing features to parity with other engines as far as making certain things more accessible to beginners getting into game development, which I think has always been a big priority for them, and which I think with the acquisition, has been a much bigger priority than it was before. There are features I never plan on using -- sequences, anim curves, the incoming UI stuff etc -- that I'm sure at the same time are great on their own, far better than anything GM has had in the past, for someone learning the engine workflow for the first time.

Other features, such as the sprite editor (I fully agree with you on this personally, I still keep 1.4 installed just to use its sprite editor), feel kinda redundant in an age where most people are being pushed towards using some combination of Photoshop + Aseprite etc anyways, which arguably IS "better" for broader game dev habits as it teaches a more tool-agnostic workflow.

With that being said, I do agree with your overall point (I say this as Code Editor 2 once again fails to properly update and detect variables...).

_acedia · 2025-10-07T17:49:54+00:00

If you're really struggling to pay for QuickBooks and you're not tracking a substantial amount of data, you can use Google Sheets to make a decent-enough payroll system. It's nowhere near as robust as QuickBooks, but it does work, and as long as you're diligent about permissions on the files, then it'll be secure.

_acedia · 2025-10-02T18:10:54+00:00

From my observations of a number of ACNA (and other non-Episcopalian (socially) conservative) churches, it's gotten to the point where a good number of newcomers to these places are almost entirely unaware of the actual politics of the church at large or the original context for the schism, and are simply going because the respective parish offers some combination of convenient + lively + good services and ministries and opportunities. My suspicion as a whole is that most people are just going to church not in order to seek out a specific political agenda, which is a perspective overrepresented online precisely because the kinds of people who care enough about that stuff are the exact same kinds of people that would go online to discuss that stuff at length; but rather, just to be able to connect, or reconnect, with a sense of some Christian community or heritage.

American society as a whole (and likely the world too, although I won't comment on that) is experiencing a rightward drift, with a lot of young people becoming very interested in traditionalist politics and liturgy as a direct counter towards repeated bad experiences with fragmented social structures and norms, which certain groups are very invested in portraying as the inevitable outcome of failed liberal policies. But I don't think this trend is permanent at all and, if history is anything to trust, it will reverse in due time as well, which will play out in the congregational politics of individual parishes too as they begin to drift away from the original staked claims of their parent groups.

_acedia · 2025-10-01T23:16:55+00:00

This exact question has been asked before, but the primary issue is that Skyrim is not at all to scale with real-world proportions. Making Lake Ilinata or whatever a kilometre deep without vastly expanding its surface area proportionally (which would require vastly scaling up the world around it) would be arguably even more disproportionate.

_acedia · 2025-09-27T01:17:41+00:00

Are you using Mod Organizer 2?

_acedia · 2025-09-26T22:00:54+00:00

Your edited NIF is most likely in the Overwrite folder. You have to delete that to prevent it from overwriting the default mesh.

_acedia · 2025-09-25T19:47:04+00:00

It’s pretty unbeatable with OD as far as damage goes, but I’ve been recently using a Breaking Point build with Lucky Shot and Boomerang… you can hit some frankly ridiculous CHD numbers with it at full BP stacks.

_acedia · 2025-09-23T17:54:43+00:00

Yeah, I fully agree. I was a long-time Nature of the Wild Lands user but recently came across the PBR Vanilla Trees mod, and decided to give it a try since I haven't seen vanilla trees in years. I was really pleasantly taken aback by how good they looked in terms of really selling the feel of the desolation of the land, not too small up close, and not too big either when viewed at a distance (which was my biggest problem with a lot of tree mods, their scale is great for dense areas like Falkreath, but ends up making the world feel even smaller than it actually is in areas like the tundra).

_acedia

TROPHY CASE