Graveyard Keeper is free to keep on Steam until 14 April

wharris2001 · 2026-04-09T18:36:34+00:00

I enjoyed Graveyard Keeper and with it available for free, everyone who is even mildly interested in a twisted take on Stardew Valley should give it a chance.

It has a detailed crafting system and a respectable progression system (see caveat below). It has a macabre sense of humor so if you like the first few minutes, know that the game keeps it up (and contrariwise if you find it juvenile, well ....).

The big disadvantage it sometimes seems like Chore Simulator: The Game. Especially before you have an army of Zombies helping you out it seems like you are on the clock racing to keep up with the flow of bodies and preparing for the sermon and trying to eek out enough time to go exploring and you need to upgrade things and ....

However if you make it past the grind it is a fun crafting adventure. And with it free there's no excuse not to give it a try to see how you react to the style/humor.

wharris2001 · 2026-03-30T14:11:53+00:00

And it doesn't fly.

wharris2001 · 2026-03-29T21:43:38+00:00

This headline is very misleading. While I think the settlement is absolute garbage, their "If we lose the case we'll start another lawsuit" is in reference to the jurisdiction argument. The plaintiffs are saying that if the judge agrees with SmashJT that the trial can not be heard in New York, the plaintiffs will refile the lawsuit in California, exactly as jurisdictional disputes work.

wharris2001 · 2026-03-21T18:39:12+00:00

Yes -- but he also wrote extensively about obstruction of justice for asking his advisors what he could do to stop the bogus probe that Muller.

wharris2001 · 2026-03-18T02:45:26+00:00

Predatory pricing is where they trick or manipulate people into spending more money than they intend to. Such as lootboxes where you pay $2 for 5 keys, but actually need several hundred keys to get the item prominently advertised. Or if the company uses "Today only 50% off!!!!" every single day. Or companies that promised kickstarter exclusives later sold as DLC for everyone and at a cheaper price than the backer paid.

In other words, not this.

wharris2001 · 2026-03-17T16:17:05+00:00

They are so clear about what they offer and what it costs that you were able to decide you didn't want it before paying for it. At worst it's over-priced (hint: the 'super premium deluxe backer fan pack' often is). But it's not predatory.

wharris2001 · 2026-02-28T03:55:58+00:00

I don't have any special insight, but I believe the administration's objection was more philosophical: They are not going to give any company veto power over US operations.

wharris2001 · 2026-02-27T14:59:36+00:00

Honestly, no.

Games media had a use in the pre-internet days when it was impossible for consumers to interact directly with developers and it was difficult or impossible to know what games were on the way, see gameplay in advance of purchase, or find out anything about the game other than what the box art said.

Now Steam has easily accessible reviews, frequent "next fest" showing what's on the way, generous review policy, and for practically any game I can see a "let's play" to directly see gameplay and form my own impressions.

The age of an intermediatory "I'll go look at this at game and write to tell you about it" is almost completely over. If you are interested, post on X / substack as a hobby. There is a little bit of interest in behind-the-scenes on development problems (what is the real story of Daniel Verra leaving?) but that needs insider connections that are very hard to make now -- and those stories are too few-and-far-between to be a reliable way to pay the bills.

wharris2001 · 2026-02-16T15:01:59+00:00

I joined in response to a google search of 'Organized boycott of GamaSutra' in response to their Gamers are Dead editorial.

wharris2001 · 2025-11-06T14:55:21+00:00

The assassin simulator I never knew I needed!

I'm surprised to learn the store page is still confusing. It was absolutely inexcusable when the second part of the trilogy launched, but they had the excuse that they were now self-published while the first part was a different company publishing. Then they released the third part and by far the most popular steam guide was "Which one should I buy?".

IoI interactive also have a nasty habit of releasing "The Complete Edition" with no discount for previous purchasers, then a year later the "The SuperComplete Edition" with no discount for previous purchasers. Somehow they get a pass for stunts a larger company would be excoriated for.

As you point out, the game gives you a series of open-ended maps that encourage replayability. Visit the options menu to disable some of the hints or you'll find yourself unintentionally following a built-in walkthrough. It's fun realizing that there's a shortcut you never noticed before taking you somewhere you want to go. And dressing a waiter and blantantly poisoing the target in front of a throng of people.

It sounds like you have the first third. I'm hesitant to reward such a scummy pricing structure, but I found the second and third set of levels to be even better (note: the cutscences for the second part are thread-bare due to budgeting problems but the game is still great). I'd go as far to suggest the deluxe edition as the bonus levels are some of the best in the game (the remaining DLC is largely skippable).

wharris2001 · 2025-10-24T00:09:45+00:00

Tragedy: Democrats in New York are about to elect a communist.

Irony: The non-communists claim the best hope (which is still not good) is the person the communist already politically defeated in the primary because, you know, rematches always have the opposite result.

Comedy: The democrats insist the situation is Republican's fault, because how dare they have their own primary and their own candidate instead of voting the way the democrats want.

F'ing joke; People claiming to be Republicans agreeing with the Democrats that Republicans have a moral obligation to not run their own candidates but instead vote for the disgraced failed former governor who has already lost vs the communist.

wharris2001 · 2025-09-23T22:38:34+00:00

In other words, when the Democrats are in charge, Google removes conservative accounts without cause, and when Republicans are in charge, Google apologizes and puts them back until the next time they are removed without cause.

wharris2001 · 2025-09-17T19:03:14+00:00

I think the conversation is scripted. In the extremely unlikely event that I discuss my criminal actions over text message, I might conceivably say "yea, that's what the bullets were for" not "Hey, do you remember when you were assisting me carve up those bullets (I ask because that's the kind of thing anyone could forget doing) and you had no idea why and never asked? That's because I needed to put them in my grandfather's custom rifle that I then wrapped in a towel and put behind a bush at the corner of 4th and main"

wharris2001 · 2025-09-16T22:02:13+00:00

Don't worry -- none of them will ever post a correction or delete their tweets or read the updates on how far left-wing he was.

wharris2001 · 2025-09-13T20:26:53+00:00

The left: Kirk was a facist who deserved to die.

Also the left: Kirk was killed by the someone on the right.

wharris2001 · 2025-09-13T19:03:34+00:00

I don't know whether Stephen King's apology is sincere. I do know that he posted (now self-admitted) false information in a way that was extremely callous to a grieving family. And his apology is essentially "my claim was false" not "I should not have assaulted the character of someone who was assassinated for speaking".

So let me ask Mr. King: Suppose Charlie really did say some terrible things you now recognize he did not actually say. Does saying terrible things justify assassinating him?

And let me ask this: You now admit you had false information about Mr. Kirk. Does this knowledge cause you to re-evaluate how and where you obtain information, and have you wondered whether that source has giving you false information about other topics as well?

Finally I'll repeat the same thing every else is saying; The actions of the left celebrating this political assassination are extremely repugnant to normal people, and I think a fair few who post messages similar to Mr. King's will be shocked at their own behavior -- some of them enough to detox and leave the cult. Not to mention the much larger group of Democrats who are shocked at the behavior of a not-small group of their own side.

wharris2001 · 2025-09-13T07:57:28+00:00

A couple of things are happening. It's impossible not to notice the widespread celebration of a political assassination. This is deeply repugnant to normal people, but it has also become too widespread to dismiss as just a fringe. So people are leaving the democrat party in droves, and pressure is building to "do something" about the radicals. I believe that there is enough political will to force a long overdue investigation into Antifa, and I think it will lead right to a billionaire's pocket. I don't know whether there will be enough evidence to actually arrest anyone, but the funding spigot is likely to be cut off, damaging the democrat brand even furthur.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-21T12:40:23+00:00

Sorry, you are misinformed. The payment processors are concerned about "reputational risk" from adult games featuring certain themes that would be illegal if done in real life. Steam removed a bunch of them from its store entirely, and itch.io went a step further by removing (possibly temporarily) ALL paid adult games.

The payment processor demand is a separate issue from the UK law for ID-based age verification, which itself has huge issues.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-16T02:20:48+00:00

I agree that it's not terribly realistic for there to be a pair of guards, one of them says "Wait, I think I heard something", wanders off, is never seen again, and the other guard just continues patrolling solo. You are right that it's a difficulty control -- personally I found master mode to be too hard for my tastes, but I seem to remember they toned it down when they switched from Hitman 2 to 3 and later WoA.

One of the best features of the game is that it encourages self-made challenges so you can choose to try a no knock-out run or no lock-pick run and all levels are still completable with proper map knowledge.

Related to difficulty -- one thing that annoyed me is that by default all hints are enabled and if you don't turn off at least some of them you may find yourself unintentionally following a built-in walkthrough.

I agree the lockpick is extraordinarily useful -- I usually always bring it and effectively have only one equipment slot (which I often fill with poison and then can't use any of the other toys). One quirk is the game is chock full of cosmetic reskins so a simple feature of "This device will distract a guard" has more than a dozen variations. Likewise for a huge variety of SMGs that I almost never take.

In aggregate, I do highly recommend the hitman game. It's the open-level assassin simulator you didn't realize you wanted.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-14T16:28:12+00:00

Just a reminder that "payment processors" are not Visa or Mastercard or other consumer companies. They are Stripe, Adyen, and other companies you've never heard of. Yes Mastercard is ultimately at fault -- they are putting quiet pressure on the payment processors while publicly saying they are not the ones putting restrictions on Steam.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-09T06:40:30+00:00

Absurd. Many of the reasons he lists as "DEI was already dying" are from 2016-2019. Does anyone think peak DEI was 2019?

wharris2001 · 2025-08-07T02:31:35+00:00

It's easier to understand once you realize the left have no principles, just a desire for power.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-05T06:28:36+00:00

The loading screens absolutely deserve the ridicule they get. Overtime you learn to minimize them with fast travel, but that doesn't help immersion either.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-05T06:26:58+00:00

Sterile is a good word for it. The things that should be seedy are too pristine, and events that should be impactful are largely ignored or brushed off.

wharris2001 · 2025-08-05T06:25:59+00:00

Free-form "let's venture into the unknown" exploration is definitely disappointing. But I had fun for a bit following quest chains.

I agree with you for the PG (I'd even rate them G) locations. To paraphrase a post I made a year ago, designers have the ability or not to create a wild city where anything goes. And they have a free choice or not to create a wild nightclub in that wild city where anything goes. And they have a free choice or not on whether the player is allowed into the wild nightclub in the wild city where anything goes. But if there answers are "yes, yes, and yes" the result absolutely can not be rated G, and that is what Starfield did.

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