Great write up, thank you for sharing and I can’t wait for Part 2! I’ve never heard of X4, but now you’ve got me curious to check it out. I appreciated your thoughts on Stellaris. I played Stellaris after Crusader Kings and found myself wishing it had a little more of Crusader Kings in it, so it’s interesting to hear you describe it as having “a high focus on randomized events, narrative events, and overarching story lines.” Maybe I need to give that another chance, too.
I think the author (Brendan Sinclair) probably agrees with exactly what you’re saying - the piece is a discussion of the question, and Brendan discusses some of his more open-ended thoughts in the section that comes after the paywall cut. His central focus seems to be on the question of why the execs at the top never face accountability for these exposed failures of leadership. It isn’t to say that no good comes from these investigative pieces, but just exploring this specific aspect of it.
That said, I also agree with you that this particular article struck me as rambly.
It expires when they ink a new contract, as far as I can tell. I think they hold off on the strike for as long as negotiations are ongoing. I think jumping to a strike can poison the well in negotiations like this, so they try to get as far as they can amicably before going scorched earth.
A strike authorization is a powerful tool that gives your Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee added leverage at the bargaining table by demonstrating to the video game companies that SAG-AFTRA members support their committee and are willing to fight for a fair deal. It does not automatically mean there will be a strike. If 75% or more of eligible members casting ballots vote YES, a strike authorization passes and gives your National Board the authority to call a strike after the contract expires. In the case of SAG-AFTRA’s Interactive Media Agreement, assuming a strike authorization is approved by members, that means the National Board can call a strike anytime after September 26, 2023.
With all the exclusives that Sony has ported to PC, it’s so mind-boggling that this is the one they’ve kept on ice. Maybe they feel like a remaster is their ace-in-the-hole for PS6, a la Demon’s Souls?
me me me! I started it with my partner, we now have 3 different profiles going - one for me, one for them, one for us together. I can’t get enough of it, the mystery of the jokers is so compelling and all the dings and boops and flames are so oddly satisfying.
Fun fact: the game actually isn’t based on Poker, but rather the Filipino card game Pusoy Dos, which is a variant of the Chinese card game Big Two.
Just curious, did you get the Deck just for that? I think you can run all of those on like the Retroid Pocket, which is like 1/4 the price of the deck?
just want to say, if you have the choice to buy either the Xbox One or the newer Xbox Series controllers, it’s worth it to go for the newer one. Some of the buttons (the bumpers in particular) are way better on the newer controller.