Citrouille - Coming 29 October 2018

Citrouille (French for "pumpkin") is a cute game coming to Steam in less than 2 weeks. Looks vaguely reminiscent of Cauldron but from what I read, it's a platformer with no jumping. It's not dark at all, very colorful, and seems like it might be kid-friendly. Play as one of two witches in 50 levels on 5 worlds in story mode.

Halloween Forever

Players of Halloween Forever might want to check in if you haven't played in a while -- there are new unlockables!

Underhand

Most anything you'll find when looking for Lovecraft games in the Play Store is going to suck.

Underhand is an exception. It is a relatively small game but you won't finish it in a day. It's a card game with simple mechanics and a good grasp of the mythos without being overt. It only gets a little silly in places. It's the only mythos-type game I've liked so far for Android. Check it out.

Halloween Forever Wallpaper

If you haven't played Halloween Forever yet, you really should. It's on Steam right now for dirt cheap.

Plunket's Miscellany

17 new mods in one -- check it out at the Nexus: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/86343/

HexenKrone

Play HexenKrone (Flash)

HexenKrone is inspired by the classic game Cauldron which was popular on C64 and other platforms in the 1980s.

You should find HexenKrone much easier; there is no platform jumping and you can safely land/launch in most places. There are items and powerups also.

Music adapted from sources at theholidayspot.com. HexenKrone logo made with Chad Savage's font Ghoulish.

Red Dead December

My Dad was born in December and died in December, so this time of the year my thoughts are on him. Unlike me he was a rugged outdoorsman, a master craftsman, and a cowboy in his own right. His generation was much more romantic about the Old West and he liked Westerns a lot. Since we didn't have hunting or fishing in common much, one thing we could enjoy together was a good movie.

What movies have been, games are becoming. I cannot imagine Dad playing a console game, but I just played Red Dead Redemption through to the end, and he was there with me in spirit for sure. I'm very picky with console games, and Westerns are not my favorite.

You have got to play this game.

Red Dead Redemption is rare art. The characters have hundreds of lines of dialogue; the game world is open, sprawling, and beautifully detailed; the story is long and gripping. It's fun but not easy. There is no way you will finish it in less than 15 hours unless you are an experienced gamer and avoid all tangents. For most of the rest of us, it'll take more like 40 hours. That's a long-ass Western, but you get to do pretty much everything one could want to in the genre. It's arguably less epic (in the correct usage of the word) than God of War or Skyrim, and obviously less fantastical, but it gets you inside much more than either of those.

Certain milestones in this game are emotionally intense. When you finally get to Mexico (after much struggle) and the music changes, you will get goosebumps. I don't like chick flicks or or things that make me cry. But by the time you reach the end of the game, the investment you have in the characters will be high, and as with real life, there is a cost. Not to spoil much but transition is a major theme of the game -- not just of the landscape and the country but in one's own life and ultimately from one generation to the next. I'm still reeling from the heaviness of the ending.

Dad's spirit must surely have been laughing with me at the things prostitutes say in this game, or at what happens when you place a captive in front of an oncoming train, or cussing with me when surprised by a cougar attack. When the credits rolled I could not resist applauding, though alone in the house. Then sweetly and sadly I read every name go up the screen, fondly remembering when Dad took me to the debut of Star Wars in 1977. He carefully and thoughtfully watched the names go up, telling me he always read the credits because every person involved, big or small, was vital to the end product. I carry on the tradition.

Don't know what else to say. I'm late to this one but Rockstar Games did a thing about as well as it can be done.

Holiday Hit-N-Run

December blues? Feel like running over a few elves and snowmen? Try the new stress reliever at YargCade.

Holiday Hit-N-Run

Furlough is the Mother of Intervention

12 days into this furlough so far.  I s'pose it's time to seek supplemental employment. My portfolio at mkdavis.net is now freshly redesigned with a great html5 template from html5up, and a responsive, cross-platform lightbox.

Also, and more fun, I finally made good use of the YargCade domain and uploaded 5 cool Flash games!

Hook'Em

Hook'Em was an experiment that turned out to be one of the most useful things in the house when my boys were toddling. Seriously. Once you start it, all they use is the spacebar. The demo has only 2 of the 7 levels but if you chunk down the ten bucks for the full version, your younger kids will be occupied long enough for you to argue with Comcast, locate your sanity, maybe even shower. Guaranteed.

The full version also includes an Explore and Learn mode, which carefully explains to your little ones that they might not actually be able to pull in a whale with a rod and reel, and that some things are better left in the water.

Sharks!

Also a spacebar game, and nearly as attention-keeping as Hook'Em. In this case you get to choose between five sharks and basically eat everything you see. That's it. They love it. Clear a screen and if you carry a few things to the surface, a caged diver comes down. Ram his cage a few times and he soils his wetsuit. They LOVE that. Did I mention this is free?

Monster Maker

Choose parts to mix and match your monster, then send it out to gather more parts. Sick. Free.

Broomstix

Broomstix is not aimed at kids. Help 13 witches fly to the rendezvous point without getting hit by bats or eaten by the Great Pumpkin. It is rated PG for cartoon nudity and mild language. Free demo. Full version is in the works.

Shoggoth

Shoggoth is more of a toy. Eat things, avoid pain. My kids love it though. Free.