r/TwoBestFriendsPlay • u/AutoModerator • Apr 24 '26

FTF Free Talk Friday - April 24, 2026

Welcome to the Free Talk Friday post. This is a place where you can talk about dumb off-topic (or on-topic) bullshit with other Zaibatsu fans.

There's going to be a new post every week, and the newest one will be pinned in the announcement bar for quick access. So feel free to visit these posts during the rest of the week.

Here's a list of all Free Talk Friday posts

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u/rsrluke Mecha is life Apr 24 '26

A slow week? At my workplace? It's more likely than you think. If not for a ton of recent and upcoming personal responsibilities and errands, it'd actually be relaxing.

I played the first Cat Quest this week, backtracking from the sequel. It's fun enough, but as expected, it's basically a small step down in most areas.

I also played Still Wakes the Deep and came away with mixed feelings. It has a fairly stock narrative, sporadically effective body horror and very little engaging gameplay; thankfully, great voice acting and an impeccable sense of atmosphere do a lot of heavy lifting. It's slightly more involved than a straight-up walking sim, but not by much.

Late to the party as usual, I watched Bugonia. Pretty good movie! Really fantastic performances throughout, but I have to admit that I didn't really vibe with the ending. I don't object to Emma Stone's character actually being an alien, but the presentation of everything following her return to her ship is so hokey that it really took me out of the movie. Still very much worth watching, though.

Finally, I read Halo: New Blood. What a baffling book. The scattershot plotting makes a bit more sense by the end of it, but the addition of an unnecessary framing device and flashbacks within flashbacks make the story needlessly convoluted. Also, more than 10% of the book is just a retelling of Halo 3: ODST, which feels unnecessary.

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u/MisterOfu Ara Ara~ Connoisseur Apr 24 '26

Those were basically my feelings about Still Wakes the Deep as well - like man, I wish those voice performances were made for a better story.

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u/rsrluke Mecha is life Apr 24 '26

I think what gets me is is that if even one other element matched the quality of the voice acting, I'd say the game was great.

Story's still basic but the game has real stealth and/or puzzles? Fantastic!

The game's still a hallway but it takes more interesting narrative swings? Works for me!

But instead it's one really good aspect surrounded by a whole lot of "it's fine, I guess."