What Video Game Did I Play Yesterday?
May 2025
May 29th, 2025
I made too many jokes to friends and family about making a complete ranking of all JRPGs a few weeks ago when IGN made a list, so now I feel slightly honor-bound to at least play a few of the RPGs I have so I can yell that some of them are better than some of the others. Last night, I started in on this by playing 15 minutes of Sephirothic Stories, a Kemco RPG I picked up for a few dollars on the Switch eShop. It is cute, but since I wasn't feeling great last night, I didn't think about it a whole lot harder than that.
I'm glad I only had one game to post about today, because I have a super-basic kielbasa and bell pepper stew on the stove and it smells really excellent. Low effort home cooking with some vegetables is going to be better for my guts in the long run than giving up and going to Taco Bell, so I am glad I got up the energy to make something.
May 28th, 2025
I finished my puzzle before bed last night, assembling all of the elaborate and strangely unappetizing looking milkshakes so that I could disassemble them before anyone came in my apartment and messed it up. It was really satisfying to get all of the big, weirdly shaped pieces in place, and I'll probably pick up another from this brand (Trendz, I think) the next time I'm at Michael's. Tonight, I'm going to get back to the 1000 piece Jujutsu Kaisen puzzle, though.
Since the puzzle did take a bit of time to finish, my gaming last night was limited. I played a couple rounds of Vampire Survivors, bouncing between the DLC adventure mode and getting an unlock in the main game. It was fun, but I'm glad I didn't spend all night on it again.
I also played a few rounds of Bomb Cat before bed, getting close to merging the final cat in a couple of games. I got too interested in what I was doing, though, so it wasn't a great game to play before getting to sleep.
May 27th, 2025
Tonight, my post is late because I've been eating nachos and watching Max Headroom. It's a good deal, but I got a stomachache and also distracted.
Starting a 300 piece puzzle last night was a bit of a mistake, since I have to finish it tonight to avoid pest control coming in and messing it up while I'm at the office. I made good progress last night, though, so this is doable! The pieces on this one have a really nice variety of shapes and sizes, so I'm enjoying it quite a lot.
I played more Vampire Survivors, too, focusing on the adventure mode again. I ended up having to level grind to better tackle stage 3 for most of my playtime, but that is very okay.
I also started Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club: Tokimeki Roadmap to the Future, a game with a title I am going to have to decide how to start abbreviating. I picked this up on release, curious how a game in the Love Live series, which is usually music oriented, would work as a visual novel. It feels like more of a slice-of-life anime simulator than a visual novel so far, which is breezy, relaxing, and low stakes. I'm doing Ayumu's route first, because I sneezed and clicked on one of her scenes first. There's 12 characters in this game, so I appreciate my allergies making this choice for me.
I misjudged how tired I was shutting off the Love Live! game, though, and ended up playing a few minutes of Baking Time, too. Last night, I unlocked some weirdly appetizing looking cartoon cinnamon rolls to serve.
May 26th, 2025
Today was pretty fun. I went to a movie and went out to get French toast for dinner, both of which were good! Once I got home, though, I started feeling so down that I got a pounding headache, which is less positive. I didn't get much done this weekend, and am frustrated with myself because of that, but it's okay! I'm going to try my best to get a good night's sleep, I'm posting here, and I got out a 300 piece puzzle to give myself a false sense of accomplishment tonight. I am sure I will cheer up!
Yesterday, I tried to diversify my gaming by trying a couple of new games. My work hours are strange, so this is less "well, duh," than it sounds, but I am setting a "no Vampire Survivors after midnight" rule for myself. I tried a monster collecting game on my Legion Go called Kadomon: Hyper Auto Battler, but it didn't make a ton of sense to me. It was super cute, and I can kind of see what I can do to succeed, but I don't know if I'll come back to it right away.
Before bed, I tried a 20 cent Switch game called Mob Control, too. It was a perfectly good go-to-sleep game, but I think I like the numbers-go-up faux sim Switch cheapies better. That being said, this isn't bad enough not to come back to, and it's satisfying to finish these things.
I did play Vampire Survivors, too, jumping between Quick Play missions and the Legacy of the Moonspell adventure mode. The adventure mode is a pretty neat way to mix things up, and I like the more guided story! I still want chaos, though, so that's why I was skipping back and forth.
May 25th, 2025
I was super tired yesterday, so I just played Vampire Survivors a while longer. It was some good game time, though! I finally unlocked the farm level, which has some respectably distinct chicken sprites when you get into it, and ended up picking up the surprisingly inexpensive DLC, too. Playing gave me a good chance to relax.
May 24th, 2025
My brain is still melted down today, so I'm allowing myself one run in Vampire Survivors for every three tasks on my to-do list. I've been surprisingly productive so far, so it wasn't as bad a strategy as it could have been!
Last night, I was able to unlock a ton in my Vampire Survivors play session, including stage secrets and a few levels. It was really good and satisfying.
May 23rd, 2025
I am the most worn down I've been at the end of a work week for a while, but I'm looking forward to three days of little projects and Vampire Survivors. I might do a weekly craft round-up photo in Tuesday's post, to show everything off together.
Yesterday, I did mix things up a bit, playing a few minutes of Isekai Rondo while watching people make beautiful Italian food on Youtube. The two things are unrelated, but I was just going through early game cutscenes, so the food stuck in my mind better.
I did keep on with Vampire Survivors, too, but only did two runs. I was sleepy, so that was fine.
May 22nd, 2025
For today's post, I just have more Vampire Survivors, which isn't the best for blogging. I did clear a level I was somewhat stuck on, though, the Dairy Plant, and am excited to move forward tonight! Since I only played one run yesterday, I have a lot I can do later.
May 21st, 2025
I am still struggling with this week, so last night, I just played Vampire Survivors more. I fell asleep during my second run and woke up to find my little character was still alive, so it's slightly frustrating that I was too tired to remember what weapons I had equipped. I'm probably just playing this again tonight. I am tired.
May 20th, 2025
I am still kind of down on being awake, but after work, I was able to get a prescription that had posed a formidable challenge and get groceries. I meal prepped some easy, lazy burrito bowls and made some cucumber mint salad, too, so I'd have real food on hand instead of just eating frozen. I'm forcing myself to face in a better direction!
In terms of games, I just played Vampire Survivors last night, and a lot of it. I was chipping away at unlocks, and did pretty well. I'm hoping to play more tonight, which seems like an achievable goal.
May 19th, 2025
I got mega burned out during work today, both because of work and some errands I was absolutely failing at, so this will not be my most in depth post.
Yesterday, while I was in the backseat of a car zipping around Chicago, I started Isekai Rondo, a simple RPG lovingly poking fun at anime and light novel tropes. It's cute so far, but I only played for half an hour or so. I haven't even really battled yet.
I played some Vampire Survivors before going to sleep, too. It was fun!
May 18th, 2025
After my post yesterday, I drove a few hours for a Porter Robinson show, which was very fun, and drove back after some shopping today. As such, I am extremely tired, but in a good way! It was a fun weekend.
Because of that, I didn't play many games yesterday, but I did play a couple stages of Project Justice during some downtime. I'm a little rusty, since I haven't played it so much since the Dreamcast days, but it's so cool to have this on my Switch!
My sister and I also passed DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou back and forth before the show, making weird faces and swearing at our failures. It was fun!
May 17th, 2025
Last night I chatted with a friend and worked on a puzzle instead of playing games too much, which was really good! This will be a quick post today.
I worked on the Jujutsu Kaisen puzzle a bit more, and am finding 1000 pieces to be overwhelming in a good way. My progress now is slow, but it'll pick up!
I played Fitness Boxing: Fist of the North Star for a little bit to force myself to exercise.
Before bed, I played a run in Hero of Fate, too. Finishing the run crashed the game, but my progress saved, so that was basically fine.
May 16th, 2025
My 100 games in 100 days goal is over because Capcom Fighting Collection 2 came out and I'd rather kick some heads right now. 40 games in 40 days was honestly pretty good, and I'm sick of finding cats for now, so I make this choice with no shame.
Last night, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 unlocked on my Switch at 11pm, so I finished what needed to be done and dug into it, starting with Capcom vs. SNK: Millenium Fight 2000. I'd played the kind of budget-release PS1 version of this a lot, Capcom vs. SNK Pro, so I was really impressed by some of the stage effects! One of them had a lot of fire in the background, with a light effect on the sprites, and it was so nifty! Plus, this game is so fun and feels so nice and smooth to play! It's not even my favorite game in this collection by a mile! It is crazy to just have all of these games on my Switch. I'm a very happy camper.
Fighting games are bad for before bed, though, so I also tried Hero of Fate, a Survivors-like with a lot of story bits and cutaways to mini-quests. I got too sleepy and shut it off before finishing a run, but I'm looking forward to playing more of this. It's weird and feels a bit off, but it's interesting, too.
I also need to get back to daily exercise, so I played Fitness Boxing feat. Hatsune Miku for 15 or so minutes. It was a little boring, but basically okay. I figured out my arm was bothering me on one side when I was playing this daily because one of my legs is just a tiny bit shorter than the others, so I jammed a weird jelly thing in my sneaker on that side and am getting back to it.
May 15th, 2025
I spent today antsy for it to be tomorrow, which is not a particularly good way to focus. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 comes out tomorrow, and I'd apologize for the content shift that represents in advance if I were actually sorry, which I am not. I'm also going on a brief quest this weekend, which I'm really looking forward to! I'm considering doing a travel page on this website, so I can finally post some photos of my Minneapolis trip and whatever else I end up taking. I'm not sure how to organize it, though, so I've been stalling out.
Anyway, I was dead tired last night, so my biggest gaming time was spent on What Lurks Below, an itch.io clicker. I'm really liking how some of these indie clicker games use the inherent repetition of the genre to build this unique sort of dull tension, and the color and sound design in this one added a lot of vibes on top of that. It was neat!
After that, I zoned out for a while and then played Baking Time for ten or so minutes before bed. I was so wiped out I don't really remember anything about this play session other than it making me want a lemon poppyseed muffin.
May 14th, 2025
I'm really sleepy for no reason tonight, but last night, I cleared 100 Korea Cats before bed, another Steam cat finding game. It was very all right. I always like when these games let me switch between color and lineart, since the new perspective makes it easier to find some cats when I get stuck.
I played a very short session of Dragon Cliff, too, clearing a few little quests before falling asleep. I want to farm some gold for an item I couldn't quite afford last night if I play it at all tonight.
After I tossed the bad Strawberry Shortcake puzzle back in the box, I got out a much nicer Jujutsu Kaisen one. This'll be the first 1000 piece puzzle I tackle on my own, but even from the 10 minutes I spent on this last night, I can tell I'm in for a better time already.
May 13th, 2025
Yesterday, I did some catch up in my 100 games in 100 days quest, getting me to 39 games in 39 days. I achieved this by digging away in the itch.io incremental/clicker game mines. In Little Dig Game, I sacrificed many virtual lives to this dig. It was very enjoyable, though, with a more cohesive mix of story and gameplay mechanics than I expected, some solid jokes, and a satisfying, surprisingly tense ending. It was probably the best clicker game I've ever played, and well worth the hour or so it took to play it. I didn't expect anything as good as Little Dig Game was out of yesterday.
That's not to sell the other games I played yesterday short, though! Dreamcore95.exe was stylish, with some interesting stacking item generation mechanics, and a relaxing gameplay arc. I zoned out for an hour or so after work with this, and it was kind of what I'd needed that night.
Coffee Drinker was simple, but funny, and was the only thing I played yesterday with a prestige/restart-with-bonuses mechanic. It made me feel like I'm not really doing enough to escalate my own caffeine habits, but it's okay to stay modest in my goals.
Idle Farm Tiny was the shortest and simplest of yesterday's clickers, but that was fine! I got to cut the heck out of some wheat, and it was fun.
Past that, I did do some before bed Switch gaming. I tried Armed 7 DX in my quest to decide what shmup I'll focus on next, but the aiming mechanic was kind of driving me up the wall. There's a lot to like about it, so I don't think that's a dealbreaker, but I need to come to grips with how to both move my mech and aim its gun. Probably, turning it on before 1am is going to help a ton with this.
I played Baking Time a little to unwind, too. It was a nice capper on a day of numbers going up.
Offline, I did work a little more on the Strawberry Shortcake puzzle I complained about yesterday, and my feelings about it did not include. The flimsy pieces were really bothering me, and by the time I noticed there was no variety to the piece shapes, I'd had it. I considered keeping this going, but instead, I boxed it all back up and put it on the shelf. Maybe I'll try it again later, but I don't want to deal with it right now.
May 12th, 2025
I had some family stuff going on yesterday, but also had a lot more time to hang out and do nothing that I expected. It maybe wasn't an amazing choice, but I used it to really focus in on Randomax, a shooter I'd bought and tried on Steam a while back. The random weapon mechanic is fun, so I wanted to zoom in on it anyway, but once I got an easy mode one credit clear pretty early on in the day, I decided it wouldn't be too hard to get a normal mode 1CC. It is a pretty easy game, so my confidence wasn't misplaced. It was 2 am by the time I got it, though! I was proud of being able to pull it off in just a few hours play, but it was maybe a little silly to stay up that late making anime girls shoot a wife variety of colorful missles (and also bees and balloons) at each other. Still, I had a good time! I just have to decide what shmup comes next!
Other than that, I (almost) finished my Doritos puzzle yesterday. It was missing a piece, which was very dissatisfying, but the quality overall was so janky that I wasn't so shocked. It was still fun, too, so I just stuck a post-it on the box that a piece was missing and popped it back on my shelf.
After that, though, I started a Strawberry Shortcake puzzle that's so much worse! The pieces are really flimsy and grainy feeling, and the image itself looks very dingy. It was the same price as the Doritos puzzle, so maybe the lesson is that five dollar puzzles just kind of suck.
May 11th, 2025
Yesterday, I did not actually catch up on game clears. I started a short cat game called Nino Maze Lo-Fi, but the mazes got so small on my screen that I didn't want to do a lot of them in a row. It's not a bad game, but it gets really difficult to actually see.
I played Vampire Survivors quite a lot, too, feeling enthusiastic about how ridiculous things are getting. It's nice to have a map feature now.
I also kept on with the Doritos puzzle, making a decent amount of progress! I don't think I'll get it finished today, but probably will be able to tomorrow.
May 10th, 2025
I'm having a laid back today, doing crafts, reading, and trying to catch up on game clears for the week. It's been nice so far! Tomorrow, at least on here, I have quite a lot of page maintenance catch-up work to do from being lazy during the week, but I'll worry about that then.
I worked more on a jigsaw puzzle than any video games yesterday, and had a nice, laid back, offline time. I like the design of my beautiful Doritos puzzle, and think the different packages are both distinct and similar enough for the right level of challenge. The pieces were cut really poorly, though! Let me tell you, I am shocked that my consumerism-themed corn chip puzzle isn't premium quality.
I did a few runs in Vampire Survivors, too, but fell asleep before I could do too much.
May 9th, 2025
After getting off work tonight, I camped out on the floor to unwind and work on a jigsaw puzzle. It's not a video game, but I'll probably post about it here tomorrow. It's relaxing in the same way a casual game can be, and it gives me an excuse to take progress photos.
Last night, I freed myself of the curse that was Seinfeld Simulator over a bowl of spaghetti, seeing the same jokes repeated dozens of times as I tried to get the "best" punchline for each in a winning game. By the end, I was very frustrated at the RNG and not enjoying it at all, but I had to finish anyway. Now I am free.
I played a couple more levels of Charm Studies, too, which is still a very cute picross visual novel. I still feel compelled to drag this out so I can enjoy it longer, but that is just my brain working in a different weird way.
Right before bed, I played Baking Time on Switch, too, which is another blue stick guy numbers goin' up casual game. This one is baking themed, as the title implies, and it is just as nice at helping me sleep as the rest of these are. It does exactly what I want it to.
May 8th, 2025
All day, I've had the strange feeling that I had an unsettling dream last night and it's still just below the surface of my mind. I think I'm just sleepy, but it's a really strange feeling! Whenever I try to think about it, I remember dreams where I visited a too-big, maze-like version of this mall I used to frequent when I lived in Japan. I didn't think of it as that important while I was there, but I dream about it a lot. Having a grocery store, a bookstore, and a KFC under the same roof must have been too much for me to process.
Anyway, in terms of games, I've had my hands on Pico-8, a "fantasy console" for a while, and have thought that it seems very interesting. It lets users make and play 8-bit games, and it seems like people have used it to try out a lot of interesting concepts! I looked at the game making side of it a few years ago and felt overwhelmed, but last night, I decided to redownload it and just play other people's games.
I tried Buns: Bunny Survivor, a difficult, but cute little enemy swarm roguelike first, and stuck with it for quite a while. I could only make it three or so minutes, but today, I found out a successful run only lasts ten minutes. I don't know if I'll focus on this too much quite yet, but I did favorite it so I can keep going later.
I also tried Seinfeld Simulator, a game that approaches stand-up comedy through connecting setups with punchlines. I really got set on getting 100% in this game, but I don't exactly like the jokes or the gameplay too much. It's an interesting idea, though, and the games move so fast that it's easy to try again over and over. I fell asleep before I could finish last night, though, as I didn't realize that getting 100% was locked behind switching out of "kids mode."
May 7th, 2025
I'm trying to be cheerier today than yesterday, and get excited about moving and finding a nicer place to live. Moving sucks, though, so it's hard to get hyped for this! I will get there, though.
Yesterday, I realized I could play visual novels from itch.io on my tablet, so I blew all my work breaks playing Miss Inconspicuous Maid Cleaning Co. It's darker than it looks, which I'm not sure is a spoiler considering the game page's trigger warnings. I got very involved in it, though, as it's basically a very short visual novel/hidden object game, where you find messy bits of rooms to tidy up. I ended up running through it four times yesterday, to see every ending, and paid to get the artbook, too. It was an interesting distraction on a bad day!
I started Charm Studies, a Picross/visual novel, too, and it's so cute! The puzzles are a bit easy so far, but I'm looking forward to see where this goes. I quit after just a few puzzles last night so I could stretch it out over a couple of play sessions.
May 6th, 2025
Today, I had some living situation stuff that had been dragging on work itself out more smoothly than I expected, but rather than being relieved, I feel kind of down. My family and friends have all offered tons of help if I need it, and I am very grateful for that and happy. It still sucks for things to feel unstable, though, so I'm not at my cheeriest.
I am still doing well at my misguided 100 games in 100 days goal, though, and got caught up yesterday, which was day 32! I spent a lot of time with Find All 2: Middle Ages, which is more in depth than a lot of the hidden object games I play. It's still breezy and fun, but runs closer to three hours than the typical 10-15 minutes, and has some puzzles and a mini game, too. Since I got this in a bundle, I have a few more of them to play. I'm looking forward to seeing where the series goes!
I also played through Where Sacabamba Aspices, a normal "find the prehistoric fish in the stationery shop" game. This one was short, but very cute, too! I also did not really know what a sacabambaaspice was before playing this, so it had some extra challenge just in my figuring out what I was looking for.
Most excitingly, though, I beat the first stage of Pocky and Rocky: Reshrined! I just got in the zone when I went to play last night, and figured out that Pocky can reflect projectiles on top of that. When I looked back at the screenshots I took, though, I was impressed by how beautiful this game is! I love the color design, and the individual leaves on the pixel art trees, and all the personality the characters have! It's hard to notice how lovely this game is when I'm trying not to die, but it's very pretty.
That is all I've got for today. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better!
May 5th, 2025
My allergies are really intolerable right now, but I played seven new-to-me games yesterday and really want to post. I'm doing a basic post tonight, and'll go in and set up the individual game pages probably on Thursday, to give myself some time to feel a little better.
I had a few finishes yesterday, but the coolest game I played yesterday was Air Twister, a rail shooter with tons of environmental variety where you can unlock clothes and sometimes ride a giant murder swan. I really loved what I've played of this so far, and even if I fall asleep before I can try another run tonight, I'm excited to see more.
The other shooter I tried yesterday was Pocky and Rocky: Reshrined, because I remember renting the SNES Pocky and Rocky as a kid and finding it too difficult. It is also too difficult for me as an adult, but I have more time to play now and don't have to take it back to Blockbuster, so I am at least going to see stage two of this game.
From here, I guess I'll go to the stuff I finished yesterday. I ran through a couple of very short story games I had saved on my Legion Go, the first being In the Rural Village of Nagoro. This is a really melancholy little Steam freebie, about ten minutes or so long, but it didn't really click with me. The art is lovely, and the song over the second half is nice, but it felt a bit themes-first, character-second to me.
Un Pas Fragile, which I had from an itch.io bundle, is also a 10 minute short story, but much more of a character study than the other one I played. It did click with me, though- it's not very eventful, but it's a calm, quiet little game about small changes. It's also really cute, which doesn't hurt.
I also, as per usual, cleared a hidden cats game. This one, Purrfectly Hidden Cats: Kittenrock, I'd tried on vacation, but needed a keyboard and mouse setup to actually play it. It's a cut above a lot of these, with a lot more interactivity and personality to it. I will probably be playing some of this team's paid games soon.
I tried another Survivors-like called Cookie Survivors, which also requires keyboard and mouse controls, and got a game clear on my third run. It was fun, though, so I'm going to knock out the achievements before calling this one cleared. One run took 100 minutes, though, so I might take my time with this quest.
I also tried Tokyo Rush: Street Racing, a 20 cent game I had stashed on my Switch. I'm bad at racing games, and this feels super easy to me. Also, the cars drive down the same sides of the street Americans would, which feels like an oversight for a video game about driving in Japan. It's an okay time waster, but I have no strong feelings about it.
May 4th, 2025
I've been pushing for max productivity today, trying to finish at least 3 tasks on my weekly to-do list every hour, so I am doing this post right before I go buy chicken strips and collapse. I have gotten a ton of cleaning done since last night, which is great, but I need to learn how to spread chores out better!
Yesterday, I mostly just zoned out, but I did have a really fantastic run in Vampire Survivors before bed. I cleared the library level, which was cool, and then cleared a short level where there were just a bunch of flowers everywhere. It made me feel powerful, and I might use that flower level to grind for some levelling currency.
I tried W.A.N.D. Project again, too, but it hasn't clicked with me yet. The runs are short, though, so I'm not going to totally give up on this.
May 3rd, 2025
I'm having trouble focusing on posting today, but am working rather steadily to make a tiny diamond painting of Marian from the NES version of Double Dragon. It's a game related project, so it's fair game! I used to get the supplies for these at Jo-Ann's, and, luckily, have a decent amount on hand right now. When I was thinking about the background for this, though, I got so frustrated that I can't just go to the store and take a look at the available gem colors. These are still available to order online from the company that makes them, so it's not like I'm cut out, but I'll miss being able to try to eyeball things in person. It sucks!
Oh, this is a games blog, though, right? Last night, I played King of Fighters: Sky Stage for a little bit, and was still struggling with it. I'm struggling a little less now, though, especially playing as Kyo. I don't love this game, as it's somehow both boring and overwhelming at once, but I'll keep chipping away at it from time to time.
I tried W.A.N.D. Project on Switch last night, too, a wave-based survivors-like with magical girl vibes. It hasn't clicked with me yet, but it has a needlessly complicated power up system that I kind of like. The challenge level is pleasantly frustrating, too.
I also chipped away at the unlockables in Candivity, which was fine. I merged many sweets.
May 2nd, 2025
My allergies are still wrecking me, so this is going to be a shorter post than these games deserve! I played through Where Kiwis last night, which was cute, brief, and let me find kiwi birds and kiwi fruits both.
I was in a Vampire Survivors mood, so I played a few rounds of that, accomplishing nothing.
I tried Replik Survivors, too, which was interesting and vaguely mysterious.
The weekend is ahead, and one of my friends gave me a Steam key for Andros Dunos 2, which I am excited to try, but for now, I gotta get some rest.
May 1st, 2025
I am feeling super crummy tonight, so I'm glad I didn't play much last night. I chipped away at unlocking everything in a couple of cheapo mobile game ports on Switch, starting with Hole.io. I played in the office level last night, which felt a little cramped, but satisfying. There were a lot of walls to take down. The mall stage is still more fun, though.
I played Candivity a little bit, too, and was impressed by how much the alternate stage changed the feel of the game. It was fun!
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