Alex Mauney - playing a game a day
@drphysisquid.bsky.social
Physicist turned R&D Engineer at a software startup.
Swimmer, aspiring triathlete, DIY enthusiast, and obsessed with factory sims.
Computers are dumber than you think.
Swimmer, aspiring triathlete, DIY enthusiast, and obsessed with factory sims.
Computers are dumber than you think.
I was highly helped by the fact that I've also been playing Hades 2 and the combat skills feel like they transferred over well.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
I was highly helped by the fact that I've also been playing Hades 2 and the combat skills feel like they transferred over well.
Highly enjoying this one. Originally planned to just spend the hour or so I'm trying to give all the games in this series but have already spent three on it and I'm sure I'll go back for more.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
Highly enjoying this one. Originally planned to just spend the hour or so I'm trying to give all the games in this series but have already spent three on it and I'm sure I'll go back for more.
If you don't already know the game, it alternates between an action roguelike to gather resources and a base builder to expand your cult. The combat feels snappy and controls well, and the creepy-cute ascetic is great.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
If you don't already know the game, it alternates between an action roguelike to gather resources and a base builder to expand your cult. The combat feels snappy and controls well, and the creepy-cute ascetic is great.
Last for the week was Cult of the Lamb by @massivemonster.bsky.social and pub @devolverdigital.com. I grabbed this a while ago and saw that a new DLC came out so it seemed the perfect time to dive in.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
Last for the week was Cult of the Lamb by @massivemonster.bsky.social and pub @devolverdigital.com. I grabbed this a while ago and saw that a new DLC came out so it seemed the perfect time to dive in.
I think I'm a significant way through the game after an hour, so I'll probably pop back in to get to the end at some point.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
I think I'm a significant way through the game after an hour, so I'll probably pop back in to get to the end at some point.
None of the puzzles were particularly difficult, but the art and music were lovely and enough to keep me engrossed. The core loop that I experienced alternated between piloting the ship by managing the sails/engines and doing environmental puzzles that fix blockages or give upgrades to the ship.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
None of the puzzles were particularly difficult, but the art and music were lovely and enough to keep me engrossed. The core loop that I experienced alternated between piloting the ship by managing the sails/engines and doing environmental puzzles that fix blockages or give upgrades to the ship.
Next was FAR: Changing Tides, a beautiful 2D puzzle game about sailing a ship through a post-apocalyptic flood.
January 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM
Next was FAR: Changing Tides, a beautiful 2D puzzle game about sailing a ship through a post-apocalyptic flood.
This one is going into the revisit pile, the missions are bite sized enough that I feel like it will be nice to drop in and out on.
January 25, 2026 at 3:58 PM
This one is going into the revisit pile, the missions are bite sized enough that I feel like it will be nice to drop in and out on.
Second was the sync attacks, which cause all your other characters to attack an enemy if they can when they take damage.
The combination of the two makes for really interesting tactics puzzles where you want to keep all characters moving but coordinated on attacks.
The combination of the two makes for really interesting tactics puzzles where you want to keep all characters moving but coordinated on attacks.
January 25, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Second was the sync attacks, which cause all your other characters to attack an enemy if they can when they take damage.
The combination of the two makes for really interesting tactics puzzles where you want to keep all characters moving but coordinated on attacks.
The combination of the two makes for really interesting tactics puzzles where you want to keep all characters moving but coordinated on attacks.
The grid based tactic game reminded me of playing Final Fantasy Tactics as a kid, but had a few cool systems that made it stand out to me.
First is that your armor and dodge are tied to how much your move on each turn, so you are incentivized to keep mobile and not just hunker down.
First is that your armor and dodge are tied to how much your move on each turn, so you are incentivized to keep mobile and not just hunker down.
January 25, 2026 at 3:58 PM
The grid based tactic game reminded me of playing Final Fantasy Tactics as a kid, but had a few cool systems that made it stand out to me.
First is that your armor and dodge are tied to how much your move on each turn, so you are incentivized to keep mobile and not just hunker down.
First is that your armor and dodge are tied to how much your move on each turn, so you are incentivized to keep mobile and not just hunker down.
First up from this week was Metal Slug Tactics. Haven't really played metal slug much other than on arcade cabinets as a kid, but this was a really pleasant surprise.
January 25, 2026 at 3:58 PM
First up from this week was Metal Slug Tactics. Haven't really played metal slug much other than on arcade cabinets as a kid, but this was a really pleasant surprise.
It's not quite an incremental or clicker game, but it's also not not a clicker game. Overall I found it an interesting exploration of probability. I've gotten the 10 in a row twice now, and I may go back to see other endings when I've got a bit of time on my heads while watching something.
January 19, 2026 at 10:50 PM
It's not quite an incremental or clicker game, but it's also not not a clicker game. Overall I found it an interesting exploration of probability. I've gotten the 10 in a row twice now, and I may go back to see other endings when I've got a bit of time on my heads while watching something.
The game revolves around flipping an unfair coin and getting money whenever you get a heads. When you get 10 heads in a row you win. You can upgrade your coin flipping, but, as the game reminds you, it's all just a matter of probability.
January 19, 2026 at 10:50 PM
The game revolves around flipping an unfair coin and getting money whenever you get a heads. When you get 10 heads in a row you win. You can upgrade your coin flipping, but, as the game reminds you, it's all just a matter of probability.
13. Unfair Flips! A game I picked up in a bundle with one of my favorite games from last year Q-Up and forgot about.
#q-up #unfairflips
#q-up #unfairflips
January 19, 2026 at 10:50 PM
13. Unfair Flips! A game I picked up in a bundle with one of my favorite games from last year Q-Up and forgot about.
#q-up #unfairflips
#q-up #unfairflips
Not a genre I normally get into so I don't think I'll be coming back, but I'm glad I gave it a try and I think it's an interesting and original take.
January 19, 2026 at 10:45 PM
Not a genre I normally get into so I don't think I'll be coming back, but I'm glad I gave it a try and I think it's an interesting and original take.
The port to computer seems to just have the two screens side by side, which isn't the most pleasant UI experience, but otherwise the graphics held up well I thought.
January 19, 2026 at 10:45 PM
The port to computer seems to just have the two screens side by side, which isn't the most pleasant UI experience, but otherwise the graphics held up well I thought.
Overall I found it very confusing at the start, with a lot of systems that don't seem well explained. That said I can definitely see the charm of the game, and I think that had I played this on the DS when it originally came out I could have gotten very into it.
January 19, 2026 at 10:45 PM
Overall I found it very confusing at the start, with a lot of systems that don't seem well explained. That said I can definitely see the charm of the game, and I think that had I played this on the DS when it originally came out I could have gotten very into it.
12. Back with more #humblebundle games for the month it's Etrian Odyssey II HD. I'd never heard of the series so no real thoughts going in. It's a JRPG dungeon crawler with a focus on exploration and map-making as you go.
January 19, 2026 at 10:45 PM
12. Back with more #humblebundle games for the month it's Etrian Odyssey II HD. I'd never heard of the series so no real thoughts going in. It's a JRPG dungeon crawler with a focus on exploration and map-making as you go.
I don't think I'd recommend picking up the genre here given that it's over 20 years old, but it is a bit remarkable how much the overall formula hasn't really changed.
January 17, 2026 at 4:19 PM
I don't think I'd recommend picking up the genre here given that it's over 20 years old, but it is a bit remarkable how much the overall formula hasn't really changed.
11. Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 from the randomizer. Played a lot of roller coaster tycoon as a kid and man was this a blast from the past. The graphics and controls have not aged well, but the kernel of nostalgia still made it enjoyable for me.
January 17, 2026 at 4:19 PM
11. Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 from the randomizer. Played a lot of roller coaster tycoon as a kid and man was this a blast from the past. The graphics and controls have not aged well, but the kernel of nostalgia still made it enjoyable for me.
World also felt really linear, very regular cadence of group of enemies then a save point, then another group of enemies, then another save point. Didn't feel like I was doing any real exploration or discovery.
January 16, 2026 at 7:22 PM
World also felt really linear, very regular cadence of group of enemies then a save point, then another group of enemies, then another save point. Didn't feel like I was doing any real exploration or discovery.
I picked the mage character at the start and combat felt weird. You start with two basic magic attacks, but one of them is just a melee punch and the other is an arc at fixed range. This left some weird dead zones in range where you couldn't hit enemies.
January 16, 2026 at 7:22 PM
I picked the mage character at the start and combat felt weird. You start with two basic magic attacks, but one of them is just a melee punch and the other is an arc at fixed range. This left some weird dead zones in range where you couldn't hit enemies.
First disappointment was that the gameplay of 3 feels much more hack-and-slash than the original's more tactical party-based systems. Feels much closer to a bad diablo clone than what I remembered.
January 16, 2026 at 7:22 PM
First disappointment was that the gameplay of 3 feels much more hack-and-slash than the original's more tactical party-based systems. Feels much closer to a bad diablo clone than what I remembered.
10. Dungeon Siege III. Switched to pickaga.me for random picking and was really excited when I saw what it rolled as I played a TON of Dungeon Siege 1 when I was a kid.
January 16, 2026 at 7:22 PM
10. Dungeon Siege III. Switched to pickaga.me for random picking and was really excited when I saw what it rolled as I played a TON of Dungeon Siege 1 when I was a kid.