Linked List 17/1/21

The (late) Holiday Edition. Looking back, it feels like I didn’t really do much during the Christmas/New Year holidays. Sydney was in a mini-lockdown after a spike in covid-19 cases and so I spent most of it sitting indoors on my computers, so not a big change from usual. It was also quite rainy. But now that I’ve thought about it a bit more, I realise all my time was sucked in by Hades, which is a very very good game. Anyway, onto the list:

Hades

You fight, you die, you live again. It’s a core tenant for most video games and especially rogue-likes, but Hades makes it THE experience of the game. Playing as Zagreus, the son of the Greek god of the Underworld, Hades, the game has you fighting through level after level of the realm of the dead in an attempt to escape to the world of the living. But each time you die, you’re whisked away along the River Styx and end up back in the Underworld where you started. In doing so, Hades marries the narrative to it’s game mechanics in a way that very few games do. The story unfolds slowly as each escape attempt reveals more and more about Zagreus, his father and the state of the Underworld.

In the beginning, each attempt escape feels like it’s at the whims of the Olympic Gods and their fickleness: Will Zeus bestow his lightning to your attacks or will you meet Athena, who will help you deflect attacks instead? Will you have Artemis bless your attacks with higher crit percentages or will you have the poisoning affects of Dionysus? But each playthrough, Zagreus gets stronger (through the game’s equivalent of a “talent tree” or from turning on God Mode, which powers you after each death until you either escape or are invulnerable) and you as a player get smarter, knowing which gods and their boons will suit your playstyle (or adapting your playstyle to which boons you get), so that each time you slowly make progress to the end. 7 rooms cleared in the first attempt. 10 in the next. Soon you’re reaching a boss at room 14. Breaking through to the next level of the Underworld at 15. Before you know it, you’re reaching 30 rooms cleared. 40 rooms cleared. And then when you’re nearing the surface and the land of the living, it dawns on you what is waiting there at the exit.

It took me about 30 attempts to finally escape the Underworld. A few weeks have passed since then and I’m now at 80 escape attempts. The longevity and fun of the game come from how simple it is to pick up and play, since every attempt escape is like a fresh playthrough, but every playthrough feels different with the six different weapons and a multitude of boons and blessings that change up the way you play the game each time. Hades was exactly the kind of game I wanted over the holidays and it’s still a game I find myself coming back to. Easily one of the best games of 2020.

Fujifilm Instax SQ6

I’ve been wanting an instant camera for awhile now. Polaroids and their films are still a bit too expensive for my liking (at roughly $3 a pop here in Australia), so the only option was Fujifilm’s Instax line. I wanted the square format because it’s a bit reminiscent of Polaroids, but also I don’t own another square format camera. At about $1.40 a photo, it feels a little more affordable than the Instax Wide and each photo feels more substantial than the Instax Mini. Fujifilm announced their new square camera, the SQ1, and I was thoroughly disappointed by it, so I opted to get the older SQ6 model for the better build quality and the more camera control options that someone like me wants. (Also Suzu Hirose and Yoshiyuki Okuyama promoted it and I’m a sucker for that kind of thing) I’ve had it for a bit over a week now and burned through nearly half my supply of photos. I’m still learning the quirks of the camera and film (and when I do, I’ll make a proper review post), but for now here’s a couple of photos from it.

George Clooney When We Need Him Most (GQ)

There’s something about George Clooney that I just like. Outside of his acting, celebrity, social activism, tequila entrepreneurship, rugged good looks and the fact that he still managed to marry up, I feel like he’s just an interesting person to have a conversation with. Though the other stuff is pretty good too.

The Reigning Queen of Pandemic Yoga

I’ve tried a couple of Yoga with Adriene video routines before and they’re pretty good, though I’m not a yoga expert. The thing that makes them work is Adriene’s almost incessant sunniness. She’s just a beam of positivity, unfettered by things like proper form, back pain or her dog getting in the way. Just do whatever feels good. There’s no judgement or expectation in her Youtube Yoga. And that’s a kind of refreshing change from everything else that’s happening the world right now.

tellusboutyourself - Baek Yerin

Your favourite k-pop idol’s favourite artist right now. It’s a dreamy kind of album, tapping into house and synth-pop in a way that I really like. And yes, there’s a song called Hall&Oates and I am all about that too.