What videogames are you playing in 2026?

[Distracted DM]

I usually hyper focus on an indie game, one at a time. My friend finally caught me between game fixations, at just the right time, to get me back into WoW. For years n years I couldn't imagine playing a tab to target MMO again, even games that I WANTED to like such as ESO I couldn't enjoy. But now here I am, 2-3 months later, playing wow again after dropping it mid-Lich King. Id tried a few times cuz of said friend so I saw a little of the xpacs since then but there's just so much content now and Midnight has been pretty good so far.

 

[Zardnaar]

I’m anti-barrelomancy in general, but if there’s an appropriate place for an explosives-induced apocalypse it’s a fireworks shop. I never get out of that one unscathed.

Play 1812 overture when you do it.

 

[Pale Violet Light]

Snapshot Games just released a new patch for Phoenix Point, six years after release, so I’ve been diving back into that. Very ambitious and much improved since release, though it’s still something of a flawed gem: a couple of balance issues and the late game can turn into a bit of a grind. Still, I love the free aim system and the writing is pretty strong for a turn-based tactics game, so I’m enjoying my latest run.

 

[Parmandur]

Starting d getting into Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition with my kids. My oldest son is really getting into speed running as a concept, really nice to share a little slice of 80s nostalgia with the Gen Alpha brigade.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Eh, it was probably me moaning about it. I wish they’d removed it all but you can ignore it for the most part (as I usually do). I would have preferred a tighter implementation of 5E rules (Solasta my beloved!) but it’s a great game nonetheless. My main complaint about BG3 is that it could have been relatively easily made even better by removing some of the cheese and by tightening up a couple of plot lines, especially near the end. But such is life.

Some of the rules changed were pretty weird and I assumed they were made for engine limitations purposes, but then Honour mode fixes almost all of them! You can turn on the Honour rules independently of the ironman saving now (which I would never use with multiplayer) and I think the game just plays better like that.

Re polish yes - act 1 is amazing, act 3 is solid but short and then act 3 is just... sprawling but unfinished feeling, like act 1 was in mid early access. DOS1 and 2 had the same issue (but worse, especially DOS2) and Swen repeatedly promised there was no way BG3 would be like that... Hah! I am intrigued to see if they make this error again with Divinity - my guess is yes they do (also if we're making bets re Divinity, I am putting down a marker that reviews will basically all give it 10/10 but by like 2035 it will be drastically less well-regarded by players than BG3, and later reviews will not be as kind following the old Bioshock Infinite path).

 

[TwoSix]

Some of the rules changed were pretty weird and I assumed they were made for engine limitations purposes, but then Honour mode fixes almost all of them! You can turn on the Honour rules independently of the ironman saving now (which I would never use with multiplayer) and I think the game just plays better like that.

Re polish yes - act 1 is amazing, act 3 is solid but short and then act 3 is just... sprawling but unfinished feeling, like act 1 was in mid early access. DOS1 and 2 had the same issue (but worse, especially DOS2) and Swen repeatedly promised there was no way BG3 would be like that... Hah! I am intrigued to see if they make this error again with Divinity - my guess is yes they do (also if we're making bets re Divinity, I am putting down a marker that reviews will basically all give it 10/10 but by like 2035 it will be drastically less well-regarded by players than BG3, and later reviews will not be as kind following the old Bioshock Infinite path).

Ideally, they'll recognize that the ideal design for these kinds of games is more of a funnel; you start very open-ended in Act I, and slowly tighten up in later Acts, focusing more on big set-piece encounters that are relatively unavoidable. The primary need is to let the parameters set by the open-ended play in the beginning have an observable impact on what occurs in the endgame set pieces and especially on the endings.

 

[MarkB]

Ideally, they'll recognize that the ideal design for these kinds of games is more of a funnel; you start very open-ended in Act I, and slowly tighten up in later Acts, focusing more on big set-piece encounters that are relatively unavoidable. The primary need is to let the parameters set by the open-ended play in the beginning have an observable impact on what occurs in the endgame set pieces and especially on the endings.

What they mostly need is fewer plotlines that wait until the final act to be resolved. An issue with BG3's large roster of party members and the fact that you can drag them all along with you is that almost all of them have questlines that can be progressed during a single playthrough and culminate in the final act. Add to that all the things relating to other NPCs and it winds up being a huge laundry list before you even start adding on things unique to that act.

Either they need to abandon that "boatload of companions" concept they've been having in their last couple of games in favour of focusing upon a smaller roster of party members during any one playthrough, or have at least half those characters' personal plot lines be resolved prior to reaching the final act.

I've currently got a BG3 playthrough that's in act 3 which I've been going back to occasionally for the past several months, playing for a few hours to resolve one or two quests, then abandoning again as what's left still feels overwhelming. Don't want to progress the main quest without resolving all the remaining threads, don't want to abandon it entirely.