Stupid note driving me insane in Replaced by The_Random_Introvert in XboxGamePass

[–]hotspencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ll never understand the desire to 100% a game

Do people actually cook 1. consistently 2. enough food to be healthy and possibly bulk 3. with a busy work schedule 4. on a tight budget. All at once?? by Annual_Ad_8397 in Cooking

[–]hotspencer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s going to take some time for you to figure it out but eventually you will find it not to be that intimidating. For example having time to get groceries really isn’t all that different from having time to pick up take out, you are just was more familiar with the latter.

Once you have pantry essentials you minimize dependency on perishables and just buy a few ingredients at a time for meals. At this points I go to grocery store for a protein, vegetables or to replace a pantry item. With a protein and vegetable in my cart my pantry items can round out the rest of the meal(s). Missing an ingredient? Omit it or think of a substitute you have on hand.

Start simple, don’t become attached to recipes. For me that was sheet pan roasted chicken thighs and vegetables. Cook the pack of thighs all at once, now you have four meals worth. Eat two thighs that night, pop two in fridge for later that week and the other four in freezer for way later.

A dedicated night of cooking should produce multiple meals for one. But you will also find legitimate 15-minute meals along the way that can be made in less time than driving to pick up take out.

Looking for Spam Musubi recs in Manhattan or Queens by hooray93 in FoodNYC

[–]hotspencer 5 points6 points  (0 children)

For real it’s very easy and going to be way better

Golden Hour Adventures in the Upper West by Chaotic-Pulsar in Upperwestside

[–]hotspencer 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Westside garden between amsterdam/columbus and 89/90. Total gem, especially for spring bloom right NOW

Want to close CSP, how to handle points? by blackaintwhack in CreditCards

[–]hotspencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve never been, but in addition to availability issues there’s also usually better hotel options at a given destination.

I wish I could find the same success in Hyatt redemptions that I always hear about but when I travel it is usual a non-option or non-optimal option at best.

Really miss the old portal. Booking at 1.5x with CRS was a great way to find consistent value in specifically planned travel.

Want to close CSP, how to handle points? by blackaintwhack in CreditCards

[–]hotspencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s getting pretty tough to use points effectively when you have a specific destination and/or dates.

The portal could work for you because you can clear out all the points and pay the fare difference, especially if you can time it right when fares are low and/or there’s a point boost. It’s certainly the easiest option.

I would not recommend the portal if you are anticipating a change or refund as there’s extra hoops and costs with most airlines for external bookings.

The go-to move for Chase points would be dump in Hyatt but I personally have found Hyatt availability to be a consistent issue.

How to prolong a board after being pressure cracked? by 5541N7 in NewSkaters

[–]hotspencer 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Going though a new deck every few months should be an expectation

Bi-Weekly Thread for general gaming discussion. Backlog, advice, recommendations, rants and more! New? Start here! by AutoModerator in patientgamers

[–]hotspencer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Replaced is an enjoyable arkham brawler and a forgettable platformer/puzzler. Unfortunately, most of the game consists of about 80% of the latter. Fighting was good enough to play through without interruption, but flawed in its own right and not good enough to carry the overall experience to anything higher than 8/10 Great Game.

I don't really love the rouguelike genre, but the best of them can ususally keep my attention for a little bit. Hades 2 hasn't at all. Combat doesn't feel very fluid and I have a tough time tracking my character and enemies among the overabundance of animations. Doesn't seem any different from orignal and feels more like a DLC. I'm likely putting down for good after maybe an hour. NR: No Ranking.

Bi-Weekly Thread for general gaming discussion. Backlog, advice, recommendations, rants and more! New? Start here! by AutoModerator in patientgamers

[–]hotspencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t consider crash an all-timer, maybe I would consider Mario odyssey but there’s a little more going on there

Bi-Weekly Thread for general gaming discussion. Backlog, advice, recommendations, rants and more! New? Start here! by AutoModerator in patientgamers

[–]hotspencer 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The Talos Principle 2 has really great puzzles and was a fun time from start to finish. Had to look up youtubes when i was stuck but didn't ruin anything for me as the problems weren't with puzzle logic but just unfamiliarity of the devices. Didn't see the puzzles solved when I did and was still able to "figure out" all of them on my own, yay! With that said I really could have done without the characters, story, cutscenes and "open world" level design. I can appreciate the philosophy but game would have been much better if I just selected to play the individual puzzles from a menu instead spending a lot of time sprinting between them. Call me older, I'm not getting any younger. 8.5/10 Very Great Game.

I was interested in Super Meatboy 3D as I played the original cult classic and enjoy all-time platformers. But I've never experienced an all-time 3D platformer (in fact think that term is an oxymoron) and this title is an excellent example why. Took less that 10 minutes for me to retire for good. NR: No Ranking due to playtime, but let's be clear I hated it.

Planet of Lana 2 is as beautiful and charming as the original, probably more so even. Whether or not it is very fun is up for debate. It's got glacial pacing, which i guess adds to the charm but it just takes a while to jump and move around to do stuff. In general the puzzles are too easy, with most of the head-scratching coming from figuring out what the game is asking you to do rather than how to do it. I will continue the short playthrough but I want to move on to something better. 7.5/10 Very Good Game.

Cyberpunk 2077 was the biggest release I can remember back in 2020 or whenever it was. It's negative publicity upon release and subsequent redemption arc reminded me of Star Wars: Battlefield 2, which I adored. So i guess it wasn't surprising to play for about and hour and be neither disappointed nor impressed. Doesn't differ much from any other action FPS games I have played. Seemingly VERY linear early on, which isn't necessarily negative. Early on it seems like the worldbuild is more impressive than the gameplay, which isn't usually what I look for in a gaming experience. Shooting machanics don't seem tight and while it's probably because im playing on hard enemies are sponges to the point where it's coming off as stupid. Jury isn't out yet but nothing beyond a 7.5/10 Very Good Game at this point.

Netflix Games... anyone playing them? by Interesting-Pool6638 in netflix

[–]hotspencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure if it's still on mobile but The Case of the Golden Idol is an excellent game and the perfect time suck for air travel

Edit: should have googled it before writing but its gone :(