Well, its been a few months since the last "what is everyone doing" thread, so now seems as good of time as any. Plus, Steam is having Next Fest over the next few days and showing off new games and demos, so it could be cool to see what people are interested in.
For the currently out stuff:
Snowrunner: Offroad trucking game, have been playing a lot of the new hardcore mode for it, when I just want something kind of chill.
Anno 1800: This has the one I have been playing a lot as a before work game or when I am listening to Youtube, since it doesnt require constant attention and its easy enough to drop in and out. Very good looking game as well.
Wreckfest: It has been a while since I have played it, but I am starting to get back into it recently.
Hearts of Iron 4: I have been playing a lot of the Kaiserreich mod, and having a blast with that. I am always interested in the story of it since, IMO, its one of the most "believable" alt-histories. Almost every change in the timeline is something that almost went the other way IRL (instead of something completely out of left field), and a lot of the changes follow from those events.
Off of gaming, I have fallen down the Vtuber rabbit hole recently, so that has been taking up a lot of my viewing time. And its been great to see people who actually have fun playing their games instead of being sweaty tryhards like some of the gamers I used to watch have become.
As for the stuff that caught my eye on the Next Fest:
Destroyer: The U-Boat Hunter": I am going to need to take some time with this one and see if there are any tutorials, but at least on the premise I LOVE it. We have plenty of games where you play as the submarine gunning for convoys (Silent Hunter, UBoot), but I am not aware of one where you play as a destroyer escorting the convoy instead. I also hope they give more options other than a Fletcher (IE, have a frigate or non-American destroyers like the Tribals).
Starship Troopers: Terran Command: Oh you better believe I am doing my part. It seems like the sort of game that is up my alley strategy wise as it is mostly focused on defensive tactics since, you know, a dedicated gun line and holding it is the most important thing when you have overwhelming odds staring you down.
Diplomacy is Not an Option: At least from what I have played so far, it is literally "They are Billions: Medieval edition." And that is not a bad thing. It also gives you some spells you can call down so that you have a little bit more impact when dealing with waves compared to TAB.
War Mongrels: Made by Destructive Creations (if that name rings a bell, they were the ones who made Hatred), its a Real Time Tactics game centered around a group of partisans and Germany Army defectors who discover what is happening in the East with the massacres and the Holocaust. So they set about waging their own little crusade to destroy as much German shit and kill as many German soldiers as possible. And being who made it, you can probably guess it is going to be bloody, brutal, and not pull its punches.
So what else is everyone else doing?
Gonna use this thread to ask for some game recommendation.
I'm looking for a squad based tactical (rpg?) game. Ideally in a modern/sf setting.
So basically something like Jagged Alliance 2 or X-COM.
Obviously played those, played Gears Tactics, Phoenix Point, Hard West and Phantom Doctrine (didn't like the last one).
I have Othercide on my list. Any other recommendations?
Not really sure if its the type you are aiming for, but Door Kickers and Door Kickers 2 are pretty fun (DK1 being SWAT Teams, DK2 being US Military Spec Ops). Xenonauts is also pretty good if your interested in the classic version of X-COM (IE: Multiple bases, multiple fireteams, but much more aggressive aliens), and they are currently working on the sequel.
I also recommend Othercide. It was a VERY different kind of game, and that is a good thing. Its also extremely good looking game, and it manages to do it with just 3 colors (Grey, White, Red). I will say it has some Roguelite element to it where if you lose, you restart the run but with more skills than before, so there is that. But like I said, I recommend.
Yeah, I already saw Door Kickers, but am on the edge about it. Probably because it doesn't use grids. Not really sure.
Xenonauts looks really great though. Will "demo" it for a few hours and then probably bite the bullet.
And I will definitely go for Othercide after your recommendation.
Thanks for the input!
As long as you're not put off by weeb-shit, I can recommend Troubleshooter as something a little more on the RPG side of the genre, although you can tell text dialogue was translated to English rather than written for English speakers.