The end of 2020

 

The last post for 2020. Some good things, lots of bad things and a whole barrel full of seriously annoying things. I don't think anyone is sad to see 2020 go away. Here's hoping '21 is going to be better.

The world has seen mass protests against corrupt governments, and of course Covid-19 dominated everything everyone did and although vaccines are slowly being distributed we're not out of the woods yet, so keep using masks and washing your hands. One day it'll be over.

But that's enough real world stuff. The world of gaming has had it's share of Whiskey Tango Foxtrot moments as well.

Looking back in this blog I was surprised to see that the failed launch of Warcraft III Refunded Reforged, was in February, this year. I could have sworn that it was last year, but no. Time has managed to both rush and crawl by at the same time.

Loot-boxes spent a lot of time in the news this year, culminating in both The Netherlands and The UK declaring them as gambling. I still maintain that it is perfectly possible to make games that are fun, fair and capable of generating extra income for the developers/publishers without resorting to garbage gambling mechanics.

The new, big game debacle has of course been the dramatic launch of Cyberpunk 2077. From working okay-ish on PC to bad on console to not at all on last gen consoles, few have been entirely happy. CD Project Red are naturally working hard to fix the issues, like a bug where if you looted too much stuff, it corrupted your save file. It wasn't the triumphant launch CDPR and everyone else wanted, but I don't think it's a disaster either. From what I've seen it is going to become a fantastic game. One day.

In the mean time, there are multiple lawsuits flying around, the CDPR devs are claiming the company leaders are lying, Sony removed the game from the PS Store and... well it seems almost appropriate that the original pen-and-paper rpg was called Cyberpunk 2020, and seeing as how 2020 has treated everyone, well, I don't know. There is a sarcastic joke in there somewhere, find it if you want to.

If this year has taught me anything else gaming wise, it is don't pre-order, do your own research instead of relying on biased media, don't give in to FOMO (fear of missing out), don't buy unfinished games, and have patience.

It's going to be interesting to see what the new year brings and despite the previous one, and the perhaps somewhat bleak tone of this post, I am optimistic. So I hope you will continue to visit me here on Eccentric Spheres and share in what's to come.

That's that. Join me again next year, until then have a great week, stay safe and don't blow yourself up with fireworks! See you in 2021!