Week of 25 Dec 2022
I cut it close, but I managed to finish up Tropico 6 before it left the Game Pass library on New Year Day. For the most part, it wasn’t anything noteworthy; I completed each mission with fairly little issue, about one-a-day. The nice thing is they tended to take place over one or two eras and you can usually follow the same economy model to establish some good income and, once that’s setup, moving forward with the main missions. This gets thrown out for the final mission, though, where you have to complete a game through all four eras while fending off thunderstorms, tornadoes, and a madman bent on crushing Tropico. This was HARD, and I very often would save anytime I got into the black financially. The most annoying part about trying to stay financially secure is that the industries and exports the outside world wants change as the eras progress, so while rum and cigars will get you far in colonial times, by the time you hit the World Wars they’re not worth much at all and you have to pivot to a more manufacturing-based economy. Usually this is easy to setup with a mission’s starting money, but trying to control the nation AND get to that point is not an easy task. And, again, you have the added randomness of an invading army and weather events to contend with, not to mention the rebels that start sprouting up as your favorability takes a dive. Usually between events I’d try to get stable, save, and then reload if the tornado took out an electronics plant or the invaders took out a power plant. It was extremely difficult, and when the win screen popped up (completely unexpectedly, I might add) I was in the negative tens of thousands of dollars with a 0% approval.
I barely made it, and I’m so glad because I’m…not the best at “putting it down and walking away” when gaming isn’t going my way. I can get very fixated one problems or such, so when I left the hospital on Thursday night having dealt with the beginning issues of entering the Modern Age in that final mission, I just couldn’t stop thinking about it! So I got home at almost midnight, and jumped back on “just for a little bit”. Ended up staying up until past 2:00, making incremental progress to the end. Forced myself to bed and jumped out of bed at 6:30 before work and ended up skipping breakfast and a shower to finally make it past the finish line. I was really tired at work, but nothing feels better than getting that completion. Whew! With only two days to spare. I’m not sure if I’ll ever do the stack. I’m really not sure how I could have done that Battle Royale mission any better, so I would not be looking forward to risking it again. Now to go back and do the Tropico 5 stack!
Achievements unlocked: 40 (+15) | Completed
Penultimo, make sure my meat is always happy!
With Tropico all settled, it was back to the hospital to spend New Year’s Eve and Day with my lovely spouse. Of course, this meant I needed to start another Game Pass Cloud game! It just so happens TrueAchievements was nice enough to post an editorial article about the “hidden gems” on Game Pass. I decided I’d play one of these, and landed on Fuga: Melodies of Steel. I actually tested this out not too long ago on my alternate account, and it kinda stuck with me. Looking at the achievement list, it’s not very difficult and there’s a New Game Plus mode to mop up the tougher achievements with a stronger tank and kids. Oh yeah, so the game is a strategy title involving a group of children piloting a massive tank, where you have to shuffle the children in pair around the vehicle’s various turrets, granting various buffs and special attacks. Once you get the hang of it everything kinda clicks and you know how to manage the Taranis against the waves of anthropomorphic Nazi stand-ins. The “Berman Empire”? And they’re all Dobermans? You didn’t even try to disguise that, CyberConnect2. Yeah, all the characters are furries, being either cat or dog people. I’m enjoying the game so far, and I’m doing my best to avoid the Soul Cannon (that uses a child’s soul for ammunition) for an achievement where you reach the end of the game with all the kids alive. This is manageable so far, but considering the massive power the weapon offers, it might not be possible on my first playthrough. Guess we’ll see!
Achievements unlocked: 13 (+13) | Completion: 30%
