Far Cry 5 - PC Game Review

Far Cry 5 seems mostly like its predecessors, except for small details. At least there was more change than between 3 and 4. I have only played a bit so far, and I like it.

One thing I didn't like is the super light UI (apparently can't be turned off). Things like the number of bullets left in the clip are now hard to read graphs, that disappear if you are not switching weapons or firing. Sure, the screen looks better but it is annoying.

One thing I like is that you no longer get the gruesome cutting up animals to get important upgrades that requires their skins. Now you use perks instead.

As in most of the series, stealth is still an useful option, which I really like (and I really missed in Just Cause 3).

Empower Your Brain With Neurogenesis - Course Review

Empower Your Brain With Neurogenesis, by Gregory Caremans, is an interesting course on how to increase neurogenesis (the creation of new cells in your brain).

If you think you stop growing brain cells as a child... You were probably taught that in the 80s or before, when that was common sense. In the 90s research proved that is not the case.

Anyway, the course was interesting, and while some of what it covered was very obvious, some was not.

Good for neurogenesis:
Movement (even walking, aerobics are better, dance is better because you have to learn and remember moves)
Natural environments
Novelty (too much causes stress, though)
Meeting People (new or not)
Learning instruments or Languages
Education in general
Massages (giving or receiving, including pets)
Hugs/Sex with people you trust/love
Meaningful interactions
Good relationships
Naps/proper sleep
Silence - 2 hours a day
Omega-3
Blueberries
Curcumin
Intermittent fasting (this one was a surprise for me, and I've done it sometimes)
Meditation
Music (listening is good, but playing or singing is better)


Bad:
Parenting (lots of stress)
Screens just before your sleep, and in general in case of addiction
Bad Relationships
Stress
Bad fats, processed foods and sugar
Alcohol (red wine is neutral, others are bad)
Blows to the brain (Duh!)

Star Control: Origins - PC Game Review

Star Control: Origins is based/inspired on the Star Control series, from the 80s. I played Star Control II quite a bit, and really enjoyed the battles and the variety of ships.

But I found almost nothing to like here. The UI is terrible in many minor ways.

Landing on planets by bumping on them seems like a poor choice, and sometimes you will just leave a planet and it will show the land screen again (why not just use the mouse???). You get missions on distant planets. How much fuel will that take? It is a mistery, the UI won't tell you. Have you gone into a planet/moon already? If so you better remember it because the UI will not show you... And more other minor annoyances.

The lander part of the game is probably the worse. It is just annoying and time consuming. You mostly just drive around getting resources and occasional interesting stuff, and shooting at rocks for more resources. It's just not fun.

Even the battle seems to be less fun than Star Control II. The only thing this game got is better graphics.

I can't recommend this in any way, even for fans of the original series.

Veracity - Book Review

Veracity, by Douglas E. Richards is a near future SF thriller. Basically a scientist evolves the perfect AI truth detector, and naturally, some people want it for themselves and won't stop at anything to get it...

I usually like his books, but I felt this one could be better. The ending is pretty good, but the middle really dragged for me.

As always, props for the author for having an appendix where he discusses all the technology used on the book, and where it is right now.

Bleed 2 - PC Game Review

Bleed 2 is a side-scroll shooter. It is cute, and I do like the graphics, but the gameplay seems to be more on the annoying side for me.

I did like the slow time mode (even if the tutorial didn't mention it).