What Video Game Did I Play Yesterday?
January 2026
January 31st, 2026
My Tamagotchi posting will be back on Monday. Last night, I played a couple of runs in Primal Survivors, a Survivors-like that I picked up dirt cheap on PS4. It's kind of fun, but last night's play session was weird because it totally frontloaded the game with trophies! If it were really terrible, maybe I would have understood that, but at worst, this'll have a long unlock grind. It feels strange that they dumped most of the trophies in the first ten minutes of play. (The screenshot is as bad as it is due to some severe hand wobbling I suffered last night, not due to how the game actually looks.)
January 30th, 2026
I actually did some minor gaming yesterday, playing a couple hours of a cute and simple creature collection roguelike called Bumpsters. I found this looking for something to kill time with on itch.io and did have quite a nice time with it. My not-Pokedex isn't complete, so I can't call this finished yet. The monsters are cute, and I'd like to see all of them! I did clear a few runs, though, which was nice.
I kept the Jurassic World Rebirth Tamagotchi going, too. Right now, I'm in a feed and clean up pattern that'll probably go on for days, but Tamagotchi Nanos are cute in that you get "special visitors," which are usually tiny pixel scenes from the property they're licensed from. I saw a couple yesterday, but I was impressed by the little pixel Laura Dern, pictured below. If you hit any of the buttons, this pans out to show them looking at a brontosaurus, like in the first movie, and it's very charming! Tamagotchi Nanos have some surprisingly nice minimalist pixel art.
January 29th, 2026
I was too sleepy for any in-depth gaming last night, but I did keep up with the Jurassic World Rebirth Tamagotchi yesterday. It evolved into a triceratops, which was neat! It didn't change the gameplay at all, though. I fed it more, ignored the games because I didn't want to play them, and cleaned up after its giant dino poops. That being said, I'm pretty happy with the little photo I took of it yesterday.
January 28th, 2026
I've been a little low on traditional gaming lately, so I thought it might be kind of fun to write about some of my virtual pets. I mostly collect Tamagotchi Nanos, since they're low maintenance and pretty well suited to life with an office job. They're cute, have some unique goals, are technically video games, and certainly have a range of quality to discuss, so they seem fine for this blog.
Right now, I think what I'll do is play one until the battery runs out and then pop over to the next one that strikes my fancy. I'm just kicking off with one I already had running, the Jurassic World Rebirth Tamagotchi Nano. I bought and like this one just because the shell is my favorite color, and also see through, which rules. It's a cute little virtual pet, though! I did a fresh reset on this and got the herbivore starter dinosaur, which is a first for me, and proceeded to throw leaf snacks at it and play an incomprehensible egg picking mini game throughout the day. Tamagotchi life is not exciting, but it is somewhat soothing.
January 27th, 2026
Since I had a headache last night, I just played a round of Clover Pit before bed. Nothing soothes a weary soul like hell slots.
January 26th, 2026
I have a nasty headache right now, so this post will be smaller than the game deserves. Last night, I started The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons on a whim. I played this some back when I came out, but it was so lovely to see how warm the colors looked on my Switch's screen! It's a nice aesthetic.
January 25th, 2026
To kick things off for today, I'm posting the puzzle I finished yesterday. I've been a little disengaged with games lately, but I had a lot of fun with this. It's just a 350 piece from Dollar Tree, but it was relaxing! Sometimes it's good to not have any screens up.
I did play a few games for a while yesterday, though. I played Hero Survival, a Survivors-like I had stashed on my XBox, and got really sleepy during it. That's not really a complaint about the quality of this game. I like the 4-weapon limit and levelling system, and progress felt steady and fair. For some reason, though, some games in this genre put me to sleep, even when I'm having a great time. Carrot Survivors is the same way. Even though it means I won't be able to buzz through this very quickly, it is handy to have a game that puts me to sleep, so I can't complain.
I also tried Faery: Legends of Avalon, which seems from the start like it's going to be a super linear turn-based RPG. I'm not sure what to make of it, but the character customization as I've been levelling, tying appearance to abilities, is kind of cool. Tank controls for flying and exploring feels crazy, though, and I'm not sure I like that.
Before bed, I tried 11 Islands: Beginning, which is a pretty basic match-3. I usually don't write about mobile games because it's boring, but this seems to have a normal beginning and end. Boring or not, that qualifies it for blog updates.
January 24th, 2026
I've really been assembling the hell out of a Dollar Tree jigsaw puzzle today, so it was difficult to get myself to pick up my computer and post! It has a lot of colors and even if it's a bit easy, it's really satisfying. I might post a photo if I finish it tomorrow, but it's just a picture of sewing thread.
Yesterday, I didn't play much. I still have the idea of playing video game board games glued in my brain, so I tried 100% Orange Juice against the built-in AI players. It was fun, and kind of what I have been looking for! I fell asleep after just one round, though, which might be for the best.
January 23rd, 2026
Last night, I played a little bit of Tetris Plus, a puzzle-mode-forward PS1 take on Tetris where you have to help a little explorer out of several improbably built Tetronimo related deathtraps. At first, it was sweet and nostalgic to see this game again, as I hadn't played it for over 20 years! Then, I remembered that the explorer you're helping in this game is hell-bent on his own destruction, climbing headlong to his own death, so I moved to having the swearing-at-the-TV sort of puzzle game fun. It was a lovely time, and even though I'm a little too sleepy to keep at it tonight, this will appear here again soon.
January 22nd, 2026
I got really frustrated by work and cold weather yesterday, so I did the gaming equivalent of opening up a grocery store puzzle magazine and played some hidden cat games last night. It did really help me relax, but I started off on the wrong foot with Hidden Cats: Pirates. The cats weren't hidden at all in this game, and it only took me two minutes to click on all of them.
After that, though, I played Hidden Cats 2: Crafts, which is from a totally different series despite the title. This is from the same developers who do the Find All games, which I'm very fond of. This one wasn't quite as good as a Find All, but it was still enjoyable. The art was nice, the cats were actually hidden, and I had a nice half hour running through it. I think I'll look into picking up more of this series, but have one more game in it to play first.
I finished up with 100 Radioactive Cats, which was completely middle of the road for this sort of game. I did like how colorful it was, and it was totally playable, too, so I felt like my cat finding binge ended on a good note.
January 21st, 2026
I'm kind of frustrated with myself for it, but I forgot to take a game screenshot last night! I turned on The Table Game on Switch, which is a Japanese board and card game collection, and decided to try playing hanafuda. It was a really nice time. The card matching guides were really helpful, and even though it used text walls within a menu for the "how to play" info, I felt like I was kind of getting the hang of what card combos I could win with. Even though I didn't play for very long last night, I enjoyed this and am looking forward to trying a little more hanafuda when I'm not half-asleep.
January 20th, 2026
I spent most of my free time yesterday doing crafts, so my game time was pretty limited. I played minigames in Mario Party for five or ten minutes before going to sleep, and that was about it.
January 19th, 2026
I'm really feeling fixated on video game versions of board games right now, but am not sure how to scratch this itch for myself. I have some ideas, so there might be some dumb posts ahead. Speaking of dumb, though, I only played games for 15 minutes yesterday, and chose to spend them on Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith for the DS. It actually wasn't bad, but I can't really articulate why I was playing a licensed beat-em-up, of all things, as I have better options for both Star Wars games and belt scrollers. I had fun, though, so it was fine.
January 18th, 2026
It was nice to be back home yesterday, but I was too sleepy to give my craft supplies and video games the respect they deserve. This was kind of nice in that it gave me a chance to catch up with some blog organization today, but last night, I only played a few really bad rounds of Luck Be A Landlord. I also slept a lot, which was fantastic.
January 17th, 2026
I'm home from vacation today! I spent a week at Disney World, and had a great time! It was my first time at a really big theme park, so I hadn't anticipated how tired I got. Pikmin Bloom aside, which I did play yesterday, too, I didn't do a lot of gaming, and that's fine! I was waking up at 5 or 6 am, which is weird for me, and really doing a lot every day, which was also weird. It was a fun experience, though, and I'll have a more normal post tomorrow. Thanks for tolerating these fairly crummy posts for the last week!
January 16th, 2026
I am still just playing Pikmin Bloom as of yesterday. My vacation is super close to over, though, so I'll be back to normal posting soon! It will be a small relief.
January 15th, 2026
Technically, I had time to play more than Pikmin Bloom yesterday, but instead, I had a lemoncello cocktail and went to sleep. It was excellent.
January 14th, 2026
Yesterday, I had a downtime-centric day, but went to a Gundam movie double feature instead of playing games. I did play Pikmin Bloom again, and some Pokemon Go, just to mix things up a bit. Mostly, though, I was trying to get myself to a theater and sitting around for three hours. It was good!
January 13th, 2026
I kept really playing a lot of Pikmin Bloom, as I was in a position to walk 30,000 steps and was finding missions like crazy. It wasn't deep or intense gaming, but I had a lot of fun! Today is quite a lot lighter, as I really destroyed my heels yesterday, but I'll probably still play some.
January 12th, 2026
Yesterday, while on my journeys, I played a lot of Pikmin Bloom, getting over double the 10,000 steps I needed for this month's community day badge! I was somewhat proud of this, but grateful to be walking even slightly less today.
Before bed, I started a very strange action RPG on my Evercade called Exile. I don't know what to make of it yet, but'll probably play a little more between or after activities today.
January 11th, 2026
I picked up Clover Pit, a slot machine roguelite with Satanic themes, on my tablet to play while traveling. It was a good choice to play it on a plane, and I made it past the first progression wall.
I played Valis a little, too, but didn't do so well thanks to being very tired.
January 10th, 2026
I am on the road, so it'll be about a week until I post with screenshots again. I don't have my proper setup right now! It's a little bit of a shame, because I was messing with Street Fighter x Tekken last night. So far, this game is kind of cool, but a bit weighed down by its own systems. I was just doing tutorial stuff, though, so I don't really know what's up yet.
I tried to go to bed early to get some sleep, but that failed. I then tried to play Picross S: SNK Classics and Neo Geo to relax, and that also failed. In the end, I only got an hour or two of sleep, but did clear quite a few Clip Picross pieces.
January 9th, 2026
It's super lame, but I was too sick for games last night. I stayed up to take my next dose of cough medicine after this post, then crashed. Usually I'd post a craft or something to compensate when this happens, but I didn't even have that from yesterday. I'm feeling way better today, though, so I feel like I made the right choices.
January 8th, 2026
I'm feeling super rough tonight, and running a small fever. It might be a rare no-games night for me, but it would be nice to play a little Picross before bed. Last night, I played a little bit of Sunseed Island, but I was too zoned out to say too much about it. That's how it goes sometimes!
January 7th, 2026
I slept really poorly last night, so I am glad that I only played a few puzzles in Picross S Genesis & Master System Collection yesterday. It's picross, so I don't have a ton to say, and that is fine.
January 6th, 2026
I got back to normal work yesterday, which limited my game time. I'll be on vacation next week, so my focus is not its best, but that's ok! I tried Zero Gunner 2- last night, and am very taken with it. It's an enjoyable shmup, and looks so shiny and Dreamcast-y! This will almost definitely show up here again.
I also played a few racers in Kirby Air Riders before bed. This game is so bright and pretty. I like when games are this cheerful.
January 5th, 2026
Today was much busier than I expected, but my apartment has a new thermostat and I was able to collect my prescriptions, so it at least ended well.
Yesterday, having finished Unfair Flips, I wanted to pick up Q-Up, another coin flipping game. However, to try to cut back on game spending, I've set up a needlessly complicated credit system for myself. This meant that I needed to clear a couple other games first.
I decided the Christmas themed hidden cat games were the desktop icons I most wanted gone, so I sat down to finish off Find All- Christmas. I actually really liked this. It had plenty of gameplay and offered some real, but not at all unfair hidden object challenges. It makes me want to tackle one of the less seasonal Find All games soon.
I also cleared Cats Hidden in Jingle Jam, which was a very typical hidden cats game. The first screen was pretty okay, and while it's nice that there was a second screen of 100 cats, it was riddled with difficult to parse blob cats. Still, this was fine for a freebie.
From there, I bought and tried Q-Up, which is quite different from Unfair Flips. This game seems like it's going to play out as a giant skill-modification based math puzzle from what I did last night, and I am very okay with that. Soon, I shall be the coin flip champion.
January 4th, 2026
Last night, I finally got the last ending in Unfair Flips! I'd needed something low intensity to play while voice chatting with one of my friends, so I didn't expect to win. Getting 10 heads in a row is perhaps the greatest dopamine hit with which gaming has ever graced me. I was delighted and will perhaps never play this again.
I did a playthrough of Yoshi's Story, too. I don't know that I'm going to go back and play all the levels after this, but it was a cute and lovely way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon. The craft supply backgrounds looked way better than I would have thought the N64 was capable of!
January 3rd, 2026
Yesterday, I was dozing off a lot, so I didn't play many games. I gave Tekken 8 a very brief try and did have fun! I just didn't have the energy for a lot of head kickin' yesterday.
I also did some doodling on Mario Paint, which I'd been fascinated by as a grade schooler! My family didn't have a computer at that point, so Mario Paint was my first experience with a mouse or digital art. It was a really effective tech literacy tool. My memories weren't spoiled at all by going back to it. The colors are a little limited, but it's a nice, simple, effective paint program. Plus, it has really nice music! It was fun to play with the sprite editor again, and the Switch 2 mouse worked well.
January 2nd, 2026
I'm so sleepy I can't think today, but I slept well last night. It's very confusing. Lately I'm having so many strange dreams that I think it's making me tired, even if I do sleep a good amount. Hopefully I can rest well tonight!
Yesterday, I was just messing around with games rather than being very focused. I played a few minutes of Ketsui: Kizuna Jigoku Tachi: Deathtiny, doing some of the spot drills meant to train you for a one credit clear. I forgot how much I love this game, but had to do some chores and shut it off.
I played through Legends of Talia: Arcadia, a kinetic novel I had stashed on my PS4 hard drive after a deep discount. It was okay, just like reading a one volume manga on my TV, but the outfits were so ridiculous that they kind of undercut the story for me. It was a silly way to present such a serious story.
I also tried Virtua Fighter Kids, getting through Akira and Lion's arcade modes. It took a little getting used to, but it was fun.
January 1st, 2026
I made my most common error today and, despite my cat allergy, spent at least two hours with a cat on my lap. Who was I to deny such a fine creature the pleasure of putting her little paws on my crochet book? It was great, but my eyes are puffy now. I'll do a better job on set-up for 2026 here later this weekend!
Yesterday, I wanted to get Battle Puzzle 2048: Wicked Witches done and over with, since it's the very rare game I'm not sure has any redeeming value. An XBox Series S should be powerful enough to run any form of 2048, so I am baffled by how buggy this is! I got all the achievements just to pretend I got my money's worth and am never playing it again.
My last clear of the year, though, was 100 Robo Cats, a Steam hidden cats game that I didn't get a screenshot of because it was only 4 minutes long. The cats were not actually hidden, but at least they were cats.
I played a little of Smurf Kart before bed, getting some of the Smurf carnage related achievements. I certainly don't dislike the Smurfs, but it was impressive to make one drive directly to the watery grave 40 times in a row. I was really gaming.
As far as pachinko goes, I also tried Simple Series 1500: Vol 15- The Pachinko. I actually had quite a nice time with this! I was getting jackpots like crazy on the machine I tried, which might be because this isn't trying to emulate the odds on a real machine. I'm not actually sure, but that seemed as reasonable as anything. I'm not sure what I'll set as my goal to call this done, but I'm looking forward to zoning out with this again.
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