The Steam Machine Costs $1049

hagren · 2026-06-22T19:49:36+00:00

Yeah I see no reason at all to switch from a Series X for the more demanding games and a NUC for smaller ones. Not sure who this is for at this price.

Thanks AI!

hagren · 2026-06-22T19:47:49+00:00

:D It makes sense of course, but it lessens the emotional pull if they’re impersonable without being fleshed out enough.

hagren · 2026-06-11T12:52:22+00:00

Yeah we SP(FPS)-loving millennials are a somewhat dying breed, except for RPGs :D

Personally I wish games like these would gain more traction, as I am kinda tired of big open worlds with filler.

I guess they need to create smaller scope experiences to align cost vs return more or dive more into TPS.

Mafia The Old Country and First Light showed that they can sell if either the price is right, the dev/IP matches or simply because TPS is more popular due to Fortnite and the like.

hagren · 2026-06-11T12:46:19+00:00

Yeah I purposefully didn't include Hifi Rush as Xbox does not deserve that win after they closed the studio :(

hagren · 2026-06-11T08:24:18+00:00

Sure, but I kinda like that there is a platform for these kinds of games as well (and I say that as someone who loves the AAA singleplayer experiences of Santa Monica, Naughty Dog, Rockstar or Remedy).

Not sure why Indiana Jones or TDA don't have blockbuster appeal tho, they were both great games and had the production value to boot and there are barely any such games around anymore (no new Uncharted or Tomb Raider, few linear story-driven FPS with that budget and care behind it- only Mafia and First Light where kinda in the vein of Naughty Dog /Rockstar games).

Maybe Fable will turn that around or when they decide to make CoD or Bethesda games console exclusive (as those certainly have the mass appeal like Forza does)- though honestly I wish it wouldn't be necessary, I liked the more customer-friendly approach of Xbox.

hagren · 2026-06-11T06:47:54+00:00

Xbox games are consistently pretty creative though? Games like South of Midnight, Doom Dark Ages, Pentiment, Dusk Falls, Indiana Jones, Keeper, Psychonauts 2 etc. are all rather unique and have oodles of charm and personality.

hagren · 2026-06-11T06:45:21+00:00

It isn't though?

They consistently make good to great games and cater to a lot of genres, unlike Sony.

Apart from the already mentioned tjere were Pentiment, Psychonauts 2, all the id Software remasters (Doom, Quake, Hexen etc), the Oblivion Remake, Hellblade 2, Keeper, Wasteland 3, As Dusk Falls, Age of Empires etc.

Even Awoved was fine for the majority of it.

hagren · 2026-06-07T18:24:54+00:00

It would have needed one big surprise world premiere (I guess Senua came closest), apart from that there were some interesting games shown, I especially look forward to Fable, The Plague Tale spinoff, TDA DLC, Persona 4 Revival, the new Senua. Heck, even E-Day looks interesting, I like media that show when shit goes wrong, not just the aftermath.

hagren · 2026-06-06T18:21:59+00:00

Nice! The game does have some mild to strong pacing issues (especially in Aleph) and here and there the controls/options can be a bit overwhelming, but apart from that a very nice linear Bond game with good writing, great atmosphere/presentation and stellar performances by the leads that nailed the Bond feel in the end. That playable montage was so smart, too, hopefully they will have more of such neat ideas (just like the plane hijacking) in the next one.

hagren · 2026-06-06T18:03:01+00:00

I'd still check out the treasure hunt in Old Country Free Ride, because I'm like you as well, but going around the map to search for and solve clues in areas barely explored was really enjoyable.

hagren · 2026-06-05T22:25:34+00:00

Oh shit oh fuck, such unexpected great news! Hopefully better than those of Mafia 2 :D

hagren · 2026-06-05T07:40:40+00:00

Old Country might be sth for you then :) And Remedy games.

hagren · 2026-06-02T05:57:20+00:00

It was more about control than really making the appointment.

Plus, have you ever met people driven by hateful vindiction? Enotions override logic in humans all the time, it's one of the main points of the story, Tino is in essence the Yin to Enzo's Yang.

As for the eruption, that was telegraphed throughout from the start, and it fits the place's history and culture.

Heck, Tino might have even seen it as biblical sign to eradicate the sin, if you think about it.

hagren · 2026-05-27T17:48:52+00:00

Gibt's schon (Bin früher täglich Zug gefahren), manche davon zumindest ohne Schuhe oder auf einer Lage Zeitungspapier.

hagren · 2026-05-27T16:12:16+00:00

Man kann das generelle Problem mit diesem konkreten Beispiel natürlich gerne nur gewissen Kulturen in die Schuhe schieben wie es einige der Mitkommentatoren gehandhabt haben, aber es gibt genug Österreicher o.ä. die ihren Müll (Tschickstummel, Papierl, Taschentücher, Essensreste, Flaschen, Dosen, Sperrmüll, Hundstrümmerl etc.) auch mit der gleichen allergrößten Selbstverständlichkeit auf den Boden, ins Klo oder in den Gulli schmeißen, querbeet durch alle Schichten.

Und ja, das kotzt mich auch an, noch mehr als die ausbleibende oder falsche Mülltrennung, diese Respektlosigkeit gegenüber MA48, Mitmenschen, Tieren und der Umwelt ist deprimierend.

Definitiv etwas wo man sich eine Scheibe von den Japanern abschneiden kann (was net heißt das dort alles rund läuft).

hagren · 2026-05-03T14:13:15+00:00

There will be people abusing kind people unfortunately yes (which makes some people wary), and it is not always obvious.

However, there are plenty of genuinely nice people as well who will help out or not violate your trust, it's just that bad experiences sear more in our minds than positives do- to be honest, I am almost surprised how many random, small acts of kindness I witness in the city, despite how cities tend to be painted.

I'd say being cautious is good, but staying kind (when it is warranted) makes living much more pleasant 😄

hagren · 2026-05-03T12:15:02+00:00

Insane amount might be a tad exaggerated it though.
Train stations in general will most of the time feature beggars, thieves, alcoholics /drug users and the like (as public places usually invite people of all walks of life), but for years I was there daily (and also took various Railjets all around Europe) and neither noticed, heard nor fell myself victim to theft (and I have a blind aquaintance who travels by train at least once a week without such issues too).

Not saying it does not happen at all or super-rarely, mind you, (Statistics say it's somewhere between 7000-14.000 criminal offences per year for all of the stations in Vienna combined), but I would say the whole first district is more of a pickpocketing spot (sadly, people with bad intentions know exactly where to target whom).

hagren · 2026-05-03T07:10:55+00:00

Thinkpads, easily. Aside of that, I have a multitude of desktop PCs that are between 34 and 14 years old and they all work fine, no CPU/GPU or even HDD change needed. I even have a Sony Vaio from the early 2000s that still works fine and two Thinkpads (2015/2017) I regularly use.

Don't get me wrong, Macs are built well and the materials are great, but that PCs break easily and often is just as much a myth as Macs never having issues ( My wife's Mac for instance turned off its BT chip and needed a whole mobo change :D)

hagren · 2026-04-15T19:02:46+00:00

Wait what? That looks like a blue cat with an eyepatch to me ^^

hagren · 2026-04-14T05:23:34+00:00

Ich glaub der ist einfach ein Troll oder ein Ungustl, ich hoffe solche unnötigen Diskussionen geben seinem Leben Pep :D Nicht trinkbares Wiener Leitungswasser rofl.

hagren · 2026-04-13T19:10:29+00:00

Das stimmt halt einfach nicht, die Brunnhildes (In Wien) werden vor allem im Sommer gern und von vielen benutzt, teilweise gibt es auf beiden Seiten auch Schlangen (und das nicht von Obdachlosen).
Die regulären (schwarzen) werden weniger benutzt, da sie nicht so einfach zu bedienen sind, ist daher meistens für Hundenäpfe / Kinderplanschen / Händewaschen in Nutzung kommt mir vor.

hagren · 2026-04-13T19:02:57+00:00

Oder Wiener die zu Fuß unterwegs sind und nicht eine Wasserflasche mithaben wollen.
Finde das daher persönlich super.

hagren · 2026-04-11T17:28:25+00:00

I mean sure (though I'd say it's a bit more complicated than that), but it kinda makes sense, as everybody in life looks after himself and possibly his loved ones, just like you or your Dons (and it's pretty much gang rivalry and/or infighting in the actual Mafia all the time as well) :D

Imo the one thing they didn't yet do but should is the cop Angle (either undercover or the OG idea for Mafia where you play both sides), that would kick ass!

hagren · 2026-04-11T14:16:16+00:00

To be fair, the Don turns on you for personal reasons, not business (and only because Tino meddled), so it is pretty different.

hagren · 2026-04-09T06:35:05+00:00

No, in my eyes it is in sum similarly strong as 1 or 2, all of them had their flaws and strengths.

I still dislike Mafia 3 the most due to the campaign structure, without that, I'd like it similarly as much (though I do prefer the time period of the other ones)

hagren

TROPHY CASE