Artistically Gifted

The most recent DLC for Two Point Museum, "Arty-Facts," recently was released.  Being a big Two Point fan, I snapped it right up and returned to the zany world of museum management.  But how does the new DLC stack up?

What is it?

DLC for Two Point Museum that adds in a new art themed vibe.  You get a new museum with its own storyline to run and lots of new items to discover on expedition as well new decorative themes.  It is priced at $10.99.

How much playtime can I expect?

To play your new museum to the four-star/story completion level (because you can keep playing to accomplish additional, more generic goals to get more stars) I would estimate ~10-12 hours.  I completed the story goals and also made it a point to unlock all the new expedition art exhibits, so I played a little bit beyond the story.  Playtime can vary based on your playstyle and goals, of course.

Pros:

The art studio--where masterpieces are made (eventually).

+ Your new art experts don't just go on expeditions, but can create their own unique works of art.  You can build an art studio and direct them to create a variety of artworks.  Similar to expeditions, creating art costs a certain amount and you can specify if you want your artists to spend more time to create a higher quality product.  A higher quality work of art costs more money and means your artist will be busy for a longer period of time, but also yields a perk.

+ Multiple kinds of art talents that can be trained.  All artists can create paintings, but you can also train (or hire) the ability to create 3D art (statues and sculptures) as well as performing arts. 

+ You can also train your artists in emotional intelligence which allows the to learn new emotions that can be added into their artworks.  Emotions impact guest feelings and there are certain guest bonuses related to the emotions that they experience.

+ Lots of fun new art themed decorative items to give your art museum the perfect vibe.

A performance artist puts on a dramatic play.

+ Building a stage allows you to employ performance artists who can put on performances that guests will pay additional money to watch.  You can unlock additional performance styles on expedition and they include themes like miming, martial arts, and music.  Like artworks, the type of performance your expert can put on depends on the emotional range that they are trained in.

+ Tons of funny famous artworks to discover on expedition.  Many are silly mockups of actual famous artwork or have a Two Point twist.

Some of the famous artworks--Cheesy Gothic & the Stinker.

+ New interactive activities to keep guests entertained.  There's an art stations for the kiddies, a fun sketch stage, and a full-body art/catapult activity.

+ To keep your security on their toes, there's also a new guild of thieves to contend with.  These art thieves will steal your valuable work and replace it with a valueless, silly forgery.

+ Making money is a cinch thanks to Snoteby's auctions (love the name).  These monthly auctions seek out specific kinds of artworks (usually a combination of a type of artwork with a specific emotion--statues that express joy, for example) that you can mark for auction.  The amount you get depends on the quality of the artwork.  Auctions are a good option to get rid of lower-quality works, but are a bit of a roll of the dice because the type of art and emotion changes each month.  Creating a range of new artworks is a good way to get your experts some experience but to also make sure you have a range of works to auction.

Interactive art!

+ There's no researching required!  Each famous or created artwork comes with a full amount of knowledge.  This eliminates the need to go on the same expeditions multiple times which can be a bit annoying.

Cons:

- It can be difficult to keep track of the emotions of each artwork and I wish they would add in a special layer on the view option to see emotions.  Instead, you have to click onto each one and find the emotion.  It's a minor annoyance when trying to auction off artwork.

Recommendation:

If you enjoy Two Point Museum you'll want to check out this DLC.  I think I actually liked it better than the wildlife DLC.  I like the ability to have your artists create unique artwork and to make money by auctioning them off.   Having different kinds of artists also adds in some variety--it's not just about paintings.  Give it a whirl!

Artistic Endeavors

I've almost wrapped up my latest The Witcher 3 marathon playthrough so unfortunately I'm not doing anything new (...yet!).  I have managed to prop up my backlog which is something I like to do in anticipation of some enjoyable summer gaming once the school year is over.  I'm likely going to hop into Timberborn (a city-builder set in a civilization of beavers) but have a few casual, good-times kinds of games on deck.  It's always a bit fun to have that anticipation of what to play next!

In current gaming news, it was announced this week that the next DLC for Two Point Museum will be released very soon!  The "Arty-Facts" DLC allows you to run a quirky new art museum.  Give the trailer ye olde gander:

It looks like we'll get a new type of art expert who can also create artworks as well as performers.  I'm curious if you'll be able to hire different kinds of performers since the trailer shows mimes, dancers, and a Shakespearean actor.  There also seems to be some sort of guest emotion element that is tied to the displays.

Overall, I'm very excited for this DLC and love the quirky charm of the entire Two Point series.  The best thing about their DLC announcements is that they usually wait until it's pretty close to release--in this case, it's May 7th, so only a short wait.  It's extra fun to add to my upcoming playlist!

Museum Updates

I haven't dipped my toes into the Two Point Museum pool since the "Zooseum" DLC, but have been paying attention to the many seasonal updates that pop up from time to time.  One very cool feature that they added into the game is the ability to choose which season you want to play and then have access to all the features/events related to that season...even if the timeframe has already passed.  This is such a great idea because it lets players have the chance to unlock all the items even if they missed the season.

The newest update features a new rift in the digiverse (a sort of side-quest like task that involves hiring a special expert but that unlocks some cool new displays and items for your museum).  The digiverse generally features a collaboration between another game and has featured content from Dredge and Vampire Survivors.  This time around it's an absolute mobile classic--Angry Birds!  Man, I loved some Angry Birds back in the day.  It's fun to see the content in another game that I enjoy.  Check out the preview video:

Besides all the fun Angry Birds stuff, there are also some Easter themed seasonal events and items.  A new botany exhibit, a bunny suit, and some bunnies for the zoo!  I might have to check it out.

Adventure in the Zooseum

So it has been awhile since I posted anything and that's largely because I've been going through a bit of a rough patch.  I had some serious insomnia and had to eliminate much of my nighttime gaming in an effort to try to fix that issue and then was just too tired/depressed that I felt like doing much gaming.  Even though it's the post-Thanksgiving time, I'm extremely grateful for the support of my family, doctor, counselors, and work colleagues for helping me to finally feel like I'm getting closer to the end of the dark tunnel and coming out into a more normal patch of sunlight/life.  If you're struggling with mental health, I strongly suggest reaching out for help wherever you can find it.

In the time that I did spend with gaming I checked out the new "Zooseum" expansion for my favorite silly management game Two Point Museum.  This DLC introduces an animal-themed museum and a few new game mechanics that make it feel a bit different than running a normal museum.  Let's get to the reviewing!

Pros:

+ A brand new museum to run!  One of my irritations with the Fantasy Finds DLC was that it simply added in a new map and category of artifacts.  This time around you actually get a starred museum complete with a set of goals to accomplish at each star level.

A large terrarium can house many smaller critters like hamsters.

+ Lots of fun/cute animals to discover and add to your collection.  Your collection can include terrariums for smaller species and habitats for the variety of larger critters on the new map.  Each animal has a specific preference for the type of biome in its habitat and some animals prefer denser decoration while others like more open spaces.

+ New mechanics/skills for your experts.  Rather than slightly increasing the discovery percentage each time you explore a specific location you have to restore the "biodiversity" of an area.  How exactly do you do that?  Some experts can be trained in skills that are usable on maps with specific types of positive events that will increase the level.  You can also create new items in the workshop that can be carried on an expedition that will increase the level.  Ultimately though, you can breed animals in your zoo and then release them into the wild.  Doing this seems to have the greatest impact on increasing biodiversity and will increase the quality of animals that you can discover.

+ New room--the animal welfare/spa!  Some animals you discover are sick and require treatment before you can put them on display.  Experts can be trained in animal welfare to specifically be able to work in this room and cure and learn about the animals.  The only way to gain knowledge about animals is to research them in the welfare/spa room.

Outdoor habitats for my collection of animals.

+ Each habitat type has lots of fun decorations so you can create exactly the type of display that will please guests and animals.

+ There continues to be seasonal updates that introduce new items as well as new digital rifts, so if you haven't played in awhile, there's plenty of new stuff to keep you entertained.

Cons:

- Keep habitats clean requires a large number of experts.  Let's just say that your animals poop a lot...like constantly, so don't be surprised if you get a negative review of the cleanliness of your habitats.

- Gaining knowledge of animals in the animal spa seems to occur at random.  Just because you research an animal that doesn't mean you'll gain knowledge about the species and may have to repeatedly research that animals.  It can be a bit frustrating, but just keep sticking them in there until you gain the knowledge.

- One complaint that I've seen online is about the lack of outdoor bathrooms for guests.  Since the animal habitats are all displayed outdoors your guests have to venture all the way back into the main building to use the facilities.  (*For reals though--easy solution is to build a small building and make it your restroom...but I get it, it would be nice to have an outdoor bathroom option)

Recommendation:

The animals are cute and some of the new mechanics give it some variety.  It's worth the $10.99 cost if you're going to shoot for that five-star experience.  The addition of an entirely new museum is a big plus.  If you're a fan of Two Point, you'll want to check it out.

New Content and Release Dates

My Red Dead adventures have reached the epilogue and I'm perfectly content to experience the hopefulness of John Marston trying to shed his outlaw past for the sake of his family.  RIP Arthur (and horse...we can't forget his faithful horse).  I'm keeping watch for any news about my other favorite games and there have been a few fun little nuggets of news that have popped up!

News Nugget #1

The latest update for Two Point Museum added in a bunch of new features that include a variety of new displays from the "digiverse"--a sort of alternate dimension that can be slightly risky to explore.  On top of that, they also included a crossover with Dredge!  Now you can display the creepy denizens of the deep in your own museum.  I haven't played it yet, but fully intend to check it out once I finally (someday) finish my latest cowboy adventures.  You can view the preview video below:

News Nugget #2

Slime Rancher 2 will fully launch on September 23rd!  It has been in early access for a long time (like 2 or 3 years) and I've been seeing some of the content on social media.  If you are unfamiliar with Slime Rancher, I would highly encourage you to check out the original game.  It definitely falls on the casual side of the spectrum, but it's the perfect happy, relaxing game for just chilling with no stress.  The slimes are cute, there's a bit of management and exploration, and there's a background story built in.  I can't wait to see what the latest iteration has in store!  They're also releasing a physical edition (if that's your jam).

I'm hoping to spend some time in the future with both of these delightful games.  It's a Labor Day weekend in the U.S., so I hope everyone gets to enjoy some fun outdoor time and maybe a bit of gaming.

20-Sided Dice of Joy

The new DLC for Two Point Museum--"Fantasy Finds"--released a couple of weeks ago and I spent many enjoyable hours checking out all the new additions to my favorite silly management series.  If it has been awhile since you picked up Two Point Museum, this is the perfect time to add some fun new content and check out the many quality of life changes that have been implemented.  You can grab the new DLC for just $7.99 on Steam (and maybe Epic...I think I've seen Two Point there too now).

What is it?

The first DLC for Two Point Museum.  It features a brand new expedition map with a large number of new Points of Interest to explore and tons of new fantasy themed exhibits, staff traits, and decorative items.  To fully explore the map/unlock all the new items you're looking at a good chunk of additional playtime.  I have always found the $7.99 price tag to be a good price point for DLC and I feel like I got my moneys worth with this one.

Pros:

+ Full lean into the "fantasy" theme that is a lot of fun.  The new exhibits fall into several classes--there are enchanted items (my favorite being the chicken spawning totem that randomly pops out a bunch of goofy looking fowl), goblin-themed items, dwarven items, mythical items, and even some new dragon bones (which technically fall under prehistory as fossils).  There's an entire storyline about fighting a dragon that serves as the progression on the map and can even affect which locations you are able to access.  If you're into going all out on the theme decorations--there are new fantasy inspired items to make the perfect fantasy land!

Chickens!  It's a bug, but they're kind of cute.

+ Staff traits that are DnD-inspired.  Rather than just hiring a fantasy expert you hire experts that have a fantasy "class."  We're talking warriors, rogues, bards, and wizards that even feature a set of "stats."  Rather than relying on the traditional museum training requirements, your fantasy experts will typically need to meet stats-related thresholds--for example, there might be a negative event that is countered by having a certain number of dexterity points.  When your staff levels up they gain XP and you can add to their base stats.  There are also special mythical items which can either be displayed as an exhibit or used to buff your staff--one of my favorite items is a pair of winged boots that buff dexterity and give your character crazy speed--they will randomly scramble all over the museum.

+ Dwarven items can be linked together and used to refine geodes into a display that is a 20-sided die that can be rolled to provide a random buff (or debuff...) for your displays or staff.  It's fun to randomly roll and see what you get (although I rolled a bad one that slowed staff way down and it didn't expire for a pretty long period of time).

+ Crossover content within exhibit themes.  For example you can take a supernatural expert and capture goblin spirits or take a botany expert and find some new plants.

My fantasy wing with many exhibits.

Cons:

- DLC does not feature a new museum.  I was a bit bummed about this because I was hoping there'd be more of a storyline/set of objectives to earn stars.  There was a new museum added as part of an update, so you could view that as an opportunity to lean fully into the fantasy theme.  Unfortunately for me, I had already started that museum and had played through a 3 location preview of the new content.

- Staff training with fantasy staff is a bit pointless and could definitely be improved.  Basically you just want to focus on improving their stats since the fantasy expeditions are not focused on specific skills.  I wish they had added in more fantasy specific training (there's one new fantasy specific training--potion brewing).  The chicken totem item is currently bugged and will keep spitting out chickens that don't disappear...I say, why not make that a trainable staff skill--chicken banishment!  (Sadly, they are fixing the chicken bug)

Recommendation:

Even though there's not a new museum, the fantasy theme is a lot of fun and there's a ton of new exhibits to discover.  For $7.99 it's a good deal and will provide many hours of dragon fighting and exhibit discovery.  Give it a whirl!

Fantasy Preview

A couple of weeks ago the first DLC for Two Point Museum was announced.  The "Fantasy Finds" DLC will feature a new museum and exploration map filled with tons of fun new items and features.  It releases on July 17th, but in case you missed it, they've offered up a bit of a preview in the latest update (4.0) for Two Point Museum!  So what exactly is in the update?

Probably the most exciting feature is a three location preview of the new fantasy themed map called Scorched Earth.  Exploring the new map isn't quite as straight forward as the other locations and has a bit of a DnD twist--rather than sending out a specialized expert and various support staff, you have to cobble together a sort of "party" of typical fantasy classes tailored toward the encounter.  All our favorite fantasy classes are featured--warriors, wizards, bards, and rogues.  There are new guest types and even robbery goblins--speedy little devils who swoop in and snatch your donations.  It's a fun way to check out some of the new features in the upcoming DLC.

The 4.0 update also added a brand new museum!  The Pointy Mountains Museum is a bit of a challenge and starts off totally bare bones--no buildings or funding.  It's up to you to get the ball rolling--taking out loans and setting up the basics of a new museum--oh, and don't forget sponsorship deals.  There are other quality of life changes in the update that are also worth checking out.  I'm enjoying some of the new staff traits (which can be positive or negative) which provide more variety when hiring.

I'm anxiously awaiting the July 17th release of "Fantasy Finds" and should have some gameplay reports next week.  In the meantime, I will be continuing to conquer the Pointy Mountains finale museum and previewing the new content.  There are also some fun summer seasonal items that you can unlock.  If it has been awhile since you've played Two Point Museum or if you're just wanting to check out the new content, now is the perfect time.

It's On!

In almost perfect timing, the Steam Summer Sale started right as I was wrapping up my 943rd Mass Effect: Legendary Edition playthrough (*synthesis ending, romanced Ashley, lost Kaiden, Legion, and Mordin--made all the same choices I always do...lolz).  I had just been thinking that it was about sale time and pondering my wishlist to decide what I wanted to grab.  So far, I've only made 1 purchase (well, sort of 2 because it was one of those bundle deals).

What did I snag up?  I decided to pounce on an indie game called Planet of Lana (Steam Store link: here).  For the low price of $4.18 I got it and another game that I've never heard of.  I'm currently playing through it and should have a full review soon.  As for the other game in the bundle...we'll see (it does have positive reviews, so it's probably worth a shot).

I generally like to grab indies during sales--especially if the price is low.  I love the creativity of indie games, but their short length and occasional lack of replayability make me hesitant to pay full price.  I've got a few triple A's on my list, but probably won't bite the bullet on any of those.

There was some exciting Two Point Museum news this week!  On July 17th, the first paid DLC is coming out.  The "Fantasy Finds" DLC adds a new selection of fantasy themed items to populate our museums with even more whacky fun times.  There are also other non-paid updates like seasonal items and even a bonus museum that could be coming out later.  I'm extremely excited!  (Check out the trailer)

No GTA 4 U!

It was...a somewhat disappointing gaming news week for (mostly console) gamers.  Probably the biggest news of the week was the (completely unsurprising) delay of the greatly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI.  If you are a console gamer and thought you'd happily be looting, shooting, and exploring a sprawling new Rockstar world this year...welp, not so much.  The new release date is in late May of 2026 now.  Sad face.  There has still been no news about the status of a PC release (we all know that a PC date is probably far in the future), so while the news might have been disappointing for console folks, us PC folks can do nothing but shrug.  There has also been some speculation about the potential price of Rockstar's latest and greatest with some projections that it could cost around $100.  As much as it sounds insane, let's be real, people will pay it.

No one is going to be playing this for awhile!

There was a bit of good news this week though!  Borderlands 4 has pushed its release date up two weeks, so at least fans will get a chance to shoot a billion baddies a bit earlier.  Before the GTA VI news rolled out there was some speculation that this was being done to avoid a potential conflict of release dates.  Guess that's not a problem anymore.  I haven't been paying a ton of attention to Borderlands related news largely because the third game was a bit meh.

In "games I actually play" news, Two Point Museum premiered its first big update.  This update features many new cosmetic features like more wall and floor patterns, but also a big batch of quality of life and fan requested features.  I've already completely played through it, but all these changes seem like they're going to make the game even better.  I didn't mess around with some of the features (like establishing patrol zones for security) and know that some of them weren't working as intended.  Hopefully they're fixed and working better.

The GPU/PC hardware news has remained fairly bleak with tariffs looming.  NVIDIA released its spate of 5060 GPU's that seem very lackluster (and, of course, overpriced) and AMD is likely going to release its own 9060 series of lower cost cards soon.  Prices are still well above MSRP and likely to remain that way for awhile.  The prices of non-GPU hardware were on a downward trend for awhile but that also seems like it's starting to move the opposite way.  It's just not a great time to build.

Museum Mastery

My Two Point Museum adventure is primarily over (I'm still playing--I'll explain), so it's time to finally write up my full review.  Did they manage to add another enjoyable management experience to the whacky Two Point world?  Short answer; yes!

What is it?

The third game in the silly management-oriented game universe of Two Point county.  The first two games saw players managing hospitals and college campuses and the newest chapter introduces the world of museums.  Play generally hinges on meeting specific goals (which change for each museum, star level, or challenge) to earn "stars."  Meeting these goals means you move on to the next set of more complicated goals to earn even more prestige for your museums.  Managing museums requires you to send staff on expeditions to find new exhibits, to keep your guests happy, and to maintain the exhibits and infrastructure of your museums.  There's plenty to keep you occupied.

My Tiger Shark display in my marine life museum.

How much playtime can I expect?

If you're just focusing on completing the game (each museum to 5 stars), probably 50-60.  There are also optional challenge maps that focus on different aspects of gameplay.  Something new that greatly extends playtime--once you reach 5 stars you can keep playing--each map gets a new general set of goals to continue adding stars.  I think I can currently go up to 8 stars and I'm at almost 80 hours played.

Pros:

+ If you've played the other games in the Two Point series the playstyle and content directly ties-in.  You have the same friendly receptionist making goofy announcements and there are characters from the other games who are VIP guests or special famous spirits that can be captured.  As someone who is a big fan of the Two Point games, I enjoyed the call backs and easy to pick up gameplay.  That doesn't mean that there's not plenty of new content/gameplay to make Museum it's own novel entry into the series.

+ 5 different museums to manage.  Each museum has it's own unique "theme" that means management is slightly different.  You start off with a sort of default pre-history museum that features fossils and dinosaur bones but quickly move on to a variety of others that include: a "marine life" museum that features live exhibits of sea creatures and the ruins of a mysterious underwater culture; a science themed museum where you can build many custom contraptions but can also display classic scientific inventions; a space museum that focuses on finding mysterious "anomalies" and learning about the other denizens of the Two Point universe; the final museum is supernatural themed and focuses on an eccentric collection of "cursed items" and capturing spirits (known as "polterguests") to display.

Managing each museum type presents its own challenges--in the marine life museum you have to make sure that you keep the exhibits alive--fish need to be housed in tanks with specific requirements such as temperature and food type.  You also have to pay special attention to the traits of the fish you capture--some will eat other fish or fight with them.  Science displays will catch fire and explode if they aren't maintained properly.  Polterguests require frequent special "spirit whispering" sessions to be kept happy or else they will break free and cause chaos (or eventually completely escape).  I enjoyed the variety of themes and management requirements for each museum type.  Oh and you can also display as many different themes as you want!

The hemo-gobbler plant transforms guests into vampires.

+ Expeditions to find new exhibits are a fun new mechanic.  There are multiple themed areas that your experts can visit.  Each map location features a specific set of events--some might require a specific set of skills from your staff but also events that can be countered by staff with those skills.  Expeditions cost money and mean that staff will be gone for a certain amount of time, so it requires attention to make sure that you've got enough staff available to deal with the normal management of the museum.

Once your staff reach the location they will discover different "grades" of exhibits--this ranges from average up to pristine.  Higher quality exhibits offer greater "buzz" (guest excitement about the exhibit) and feature special "perk" slots where you can install extra boosts.  Each expedition to the location increases the survey level slightly and can unlock higher quality exhibits.  Unlocking pristine exhibits can require many trips.  Certain items, like dinosaur bones, also require multiple trips to unlock all the parts.

+ Bigger maps!  Each museum features the ability to unlock many additional plots.  One frustrating aspect from previous games was that some maps were cramped and required effort to maximize the limited amount of space that you had.  I haven't even come close to filling up any of the maps.

+ Plenty of themed decorative items to make each museum feel on theme.  They kept the kudosh system from the previous games so you can earn special currency to unlock new items.  I'm not very creative, but with the bigger maps there's plenty of room to design special touches to make your museum feel like a regular wonderland.

+ Challenge maps.  There are three challenge maps that focus on different aspects of gameplay--one map focuses on museum security and challenges you to catch as many thieves as possible (thieves periodically appear in your museum and will try to steal your exhibits--hiring security guards and building a security booth with cameras serves to prevent thefts); another map focuses on marketing and trying to attract a specific set of guests within a certain timeframe; and the last one focuses on farming fish (you can breed fish in aquariums using a special item).

+ Sandbox mode.  You can set your own specifications and run your own mega-museum.

+ Tons of exhibits to unlock.  Each map has way more locations than what you need to reach the five star level.  To unlock new locations you have to meet specific requirements in your museum and those get harder as you advance.  There are also fun crossover locations (for example, unique botany items that might be located on the supernatural map) that require multiple types of experts.  I've been pleasantly surprised by the number of locations and exhibits on each map.  Unlocking and completing them all is quite the challenge.

+ Smoother gameplay.  One mildly annoying aspect of the previous games was the somewhat hitchy saving/loading that would take place at the beginning of each month as it clicked over into a new one.  The game would almost seem like it was hanging for like a couple of seconds before things got back into motion.  Now everything runs smooth as butter.

Cons:

- Some new mechanics aren't explained well.  I had noticed that there was an achievement for "sponsored exhibits" but couldn't figure out what that meant.  Maybe it's my own fault for not fully clicking on all the different management menus, but this was not featured in any tutorial.  I had to Google it to figure out how it worked (basically you can choose to feature special "sponsored" items or displays in your museum for extra income.  Guests might lose buzz--who actually enjoys seeing more ads?--but it can provide a good amount of cash).

 - A few annoying (and potentially serious) bugs.  I encountered one where my security guards would catch thieves only to march them toward the entrance, release them, and then be stuck in a continual cycle of pursuit, capture, and release.  Fortunately, this bug got fixed relatively quickly but there seem to be some players facing bugs with their helicopters getting stuck (preventing you from doing expeditions).  Bugs are to be expected with any new release and it seems like they're being addressed.  My own experience has been great (other than the brief security bug).

- I wish there was a % chance attached to exhibit quality or that it was explained a bit more.  As you re-visit the same expedition multiple times your chance to find higher quality exhibits increases, but its very unclear how exactly it works.  I was playing a 6-star map and it required me to find and display 20 pristine exhibits--this took a very long time.  Revisiting a map with the highest quality listed as pristine is no guarantee that you will find that quality.

Recommendation:

In a world of $69.99 games, it's nice to have something highly enjoyable come along for $29.99.  If you're a fan of the Two Point games, it's a definite must-have.  If you're someone new, it's a great introduction to the series that's a lot of fun to play.  Its laid back style and goofiness mask a highly enjoyable and challenging management game.  I'm greatly looking forward to any future DLC.

Dirty, Rotten Thieves

No, I'm not talking about NVIDIA, but about an unfortunate bug that (briefly) hit my Two Point Museum experience this week.  I was happily grinding away at my museum empire when I got a notification that my museum was being targeted by a criminal guild (an event that periodically happens).  I didn't pay much attention to it--my cameras and strolling guards did what they needed to do and exposed the criminals before they were able to steal anything.  A few minutes later though, I noticed that my guards were simply strolling the captured criminals to the edge of nearby ramps and then the criminals were running loose.  Then, the guards would resume chasing them, capture them, march them to the entrance...only to keep doing the same thing!  I was baffled and figured that it might be a bug, so I took to the bug forums.  The very first pinned post listed it as a known issue and stated that a hotfix was being developed ASAP.  I was bummed and hoped that it would be fixed quickly because I was looking forward to spending time with my museums (it's spring break where I live).  Luckily, they rolled out the fix very quickly and I'm back at it.

The spirit of Lord Blaggard resides in Wailon Lodge.

I'm making solid progress on creating a better museum experience for my guests and have 4-stars on almost every map.  I've found that I like some museum types better than others.  My least favorite is probably the Bungle map and science theme.  Unlike the other museum types, you can find plans and build different science contraptions in the workshop.  It's a bit of a mixed bag--you don't have to make multiple expeditions to the same location, but you do have to gather materials (and quite a lot of materials for the higher quality versions) by doing expeditions to the material locations.  There are some unique features of the Bungle museum that are fun--the addition of robo-janitors and security guards.  You can build charging and mod stations to keep your robots functioning and to improve them.  The downside of the robots (at least so far) has been that part of the story has the robo-janitors periodically going "haywire"--this means that they malfunction and must be fixed by a robo-security guard.  This happens quite frequently.  The map is also periodically spattered with goo (it's part of the plot of that map) and only the robo-janitors can clean it up.  Basically, my map is littered with goo puddles.

Curse, creepy items in Wailon Lodge.

My favorite museum type is the supernatural museum at Wailon Lodge.  I like the creepy vibes of the displays--a combination of "cursed" items, weird plants, and polterguests (ghosts who you can contain in specially themed rooms that are viewed by guests).  One thing I will say about all the maps is that they are much larger than in the previous games--you definitely won't feel pressured for space and can get creative.  Wailon Lodge is a prime example and as part of the story tons of space opens up as you progress.  There are also a ton of tie-ins to the other Two Point games--I've managed to catch two "famous" spirits who are story characters from Two Point Campus.  Lord Blaggard is the infamous black knight whose disciples periodically invade and cause destruction to your campus.  Another fun spirit is Albert Spiffinmoore--the founder of the magically themed Spiffinmoore college.

The Hemo-gobbler Plant is one of my favorites.

Other than the brief introduction of the thief bug, I've been having a marvelous time with Two Point Museum and can't wait to write up a full review.  I'm also looking forward to any future DLC's and plan on adding them to my collection.  Happy spring break (if you're there) and happy gaming!

So Many Museums, So Little Time

Two Point Museum has been keeping me occupied and I'm genuinely enjoying it.  I am likely fairly far from completely finishing it (you can run your museums up to the 5-star level, this is a big change from the 3-stars in the previous games), but I'm fine with that.  Here's what I've enjoyed so far:

There is a great variety of exhibit types and each has their own particular management quirks.  You start off with the mostly straightforward pre-history exhibits--fossils and dinosaur bones.  They're easy to manage because all your experts need to do is "restore" them (keep them clean).  Dinosaur bones provide a bit of challenge because they are discovered in pieces and it generally takes multiple trips to complete the set.  After you earn an initial star you unlock other museum types...and boy oh boy, there is quite the variety.  Here's a rundown:

--Supernatural exhibits.  A whacky collection of "cursed items," (think horror movie-like items--your cursed dolls, creepy rocking horses, and janky animatronics) ghost wrangling paraphernalia (apparently an array of vacuums adapted for ghost catching), and the best part--the polterguests!  Polterguests are spirits that can be captured and placed on display for viewing as an exhibit.  Polterguests can come from several historical periods and have their own likes and dislikes when it comes to their accommodations.  They also require frequent "ghost whispering" sessions from experts to keep them content (lest they try to escape).  If you're striving for the absolute gold medal polterguest, then you absolutely must capture a famous spirit!  Famous spirits have a lot of buzz and are a major attraction--they include knights, pirates, and others.

My Tiger Shark display.

--Marine Life/Aquarium exhibits.  Marine life experts can be sent on expedition to collect a variety of fish that can be displayed in aquariums.  Fish can come from different habitats and have different requirements for their tanks--this can include food, temperature, and temperament.  Experts must also frequently attend to the tanks to make sure that they stay clean and that the fish feeders stay stocked.  One of the challenging aspects of managing fish is that some fish will fight (and can kill each other) or will eat smaller fish.  It's vitally important to pay attention to their traits or else you will wind up with a tank full of dead fish (and who wants to see that?).  I've managed to kill an entire tank of fish thanks to not fully understanding the traits of a sea monster that I placed with other fish.  Luckily, even if you do kill off your fish, you can either breed or send out experts on expedition to capture more fish.  I've probably had the hardest time with my marine life museum--the fish disaster happened and I also had a thief steal an exhibit that I apparently can't replace.  (*I will prevail!)

A mixture of different aquarium displays.

--Space exhibits.  Alien objects have been spotted high in the forest and it's basically the perfect opportunity to study and display those objects.  The space museum features experts who must first dig through piles of space junk to find mysterious objects with different shaped symbols on them.  Once you can send your experts out into the expanses of space to explore, you start finding other mysterious objects that feature patterns of symbols...combining the correct symbol displays with the larger artifacts unlocks them (and provides a boost of buzz).  It's enjoyable to see the unlocked objects.

Once you've made a bit of progress you also unlock special Cheese-moonger displays (*if you haven't played Two Point Campus, the cheese-moongers are a type of alien who farm moon cheese...a delicacy--don't ask where it comes from...).  It's a fun little call back to the other Two Point games.

--Science exhibits.  A collection of classical inventions with a sort of steam-punk vibe.  Some of these items can be tweaked to have special effects on guests--like increasing buzz or entertainment.  They're also prone to catching on fire, so you need to keep those janitors trained up on fire suppression.  (Honestly, I haven't played the science museum too much, so it's on my to-do list).

--Botany exhibits--plants; this can include man-eating plants that will consume guests and turn them into other types of guests--one plant turns them into clowns and another into vampires.  Plants require a humid environment that is provided by misters and can also require warmer temperatures (installing heaters is a must).  Like fish, if your plants aren't tended to by experts, they will die and you'll have to replace them.  There's quite a variety of fun plants to unlock and I also feel like I need to make more progress on this one.

Along with all these big categories, there are also smaller subcategories in each type of exhibit.  For example, pre-history includes fossils, but also includes frozen in time items (creatures and items frozen in ice) and "pre-history's mysteries"--items whose use has been lost to time.  There are a ton of items to discover and each museum can be themed or a sort of mix-and-match of different types of exhibits.  Each type of exhibit attracts a certain type of guest, so there is quite a variety in the folks who visit your museums.

I've been impressed with what I've seen from Two Point Museum and look forward to finishing it and writing up a full review.  Happy weekend (and happy gaming) to everyone!

Night at the Museum

I'm so excited to finally be playing Two Point Museum!  The bad news though--I've sidelined my Satisfactory progress and I was feeling like saving humanity was pretty close.  I'm making plans to finish up my Satisfactory mission in the future, but for now, I'm happily engrossed in my museum adventures.

I haven't played a ton of Two Point Museum (yet), but I've had fun with what I've experienced so far.  If you're a Two Point fan like me there's a nice mix of new and familiar.  Our favorite PA/receptionist still voices the announcements, all the radio hosts are back, and the gameplay has some fresh new elements.  One of the new elements involves sending specific groups of employees (it differs for each location) out on expeditions to discover new displays.  At the end of each expedition you unlock a crate that contains a potentially new item (you can also get repeats of the same items...but there's a system set up around that) and it's exciting to watch that crate pop open.

There's lots to consider when planning your museum--guests want to learn and they also want to be entertained, so you have to plan around those factors.  Each display has a certain amount of "buzz" which can be increased by satisfying special bonuses (like positioning an item close to an item of the same family or near a certain kind of decoration) and by decorating the area around the display.  You also have to provide knowledge through informational displays.  It's important to keep your guests happy because they will make donations that help provide income for your museum.

My dino/botany display area.

When it comes to the items that you can display in your museum there is an impressive variety--so far (in my 6-ish hours of gameplay) I've encountered fossils, dinosaur bones, critters trapped in amber, aquatic ruins, aquariums with different types of fish, and man-eating plants.  Each class of items has special thematic decorative items that make designing your museum lots of fun.

Of course, there's also plenty of management--hiring and training staff, meeting the needs of guests and staff, setting up display areas, and building new rooms.  There's still a whacky/zany vibe that pervades the game and keeps things light.  So far, Two Point Museum seems to take the traditional Two Point style and improve on it.  I've been so excited to come home and play every night and am looking forward to more adventures.

Melted Dreams

Sometimes it's for the best to not be one of the first to be doing/getting something.  The whole early 5000 series NVIDIA GPU release seems like a fiasco.  Firstly, it was apparently most of a paper release with evidence of extremely meager supplies (so meager that Microcenter located in southern California got something like 67 total 5090's).  Your chances of actually obtaining a card were miniscule, but that might not be a bad thing.  There have been reports that some cards are having the same problem as the early 4090's--those absolute beastly cards suck up a massive amount of power and have been melting power cables.  What a bummer to actually get a card and then have it disintegrate before your eyes!  I'm sure those few people who actually experienced this will be getting a replacement...someday when NVIDIA actually starts pumping out GPU's (rumored to be anywhere from March to June).  And another piece of bad news is that with the new tariffs on China, those cards are going to cost as much as $400 more.

Personally, I'm pulling for AMD to release their 9000 series cards and for things to go much more smoothly.  I'd love to see AMD start grabbing more of the GPU market.  The new AMD cards are supposedly going to be released in March.  I think a lot of gamers are keeping their fingers crossed given that the 5000 series launch has been so ridiculous.

(If you want to listen/watch and entire podcast about this issue here's a link to Hardware Unboxed discussing this issue--link)

If you want a great breakdown of all the 5000 series woes, JayzTwoCents breaks it down well in this video:

My Satisfactory dreams of saving the human race from vague disaster are slowly materializing.  I've reached what appears to be the final phase (9) and am working through unlocking even more complicated machinery.  Completing this phase, of course, requires a mindboggling array of fancy items.  One of my big goals is to build another nuclear reactor that runs on plutonium rods (plutonium rods are a different fuel source that are built from the waste of uranium reactors--it's a whole other complicated process to piece together).  With this extra power I could even further refine my sadly inefficient production lines.

There has always got to be something to look forward to and I'm greatly anticipating the March 4th release of Two Point Museum!  I've seen lots of great videos of the different kinds of museums you can build--the stock natural history variety but aquariums and goofier supernatural themed affairs.  I'm not going to pre-order or buy the slightly spendier "explorer edition" that offers up a week of early access play and a bunch of mostly cosmetic/bonus items, but I'm very much looking forward to the regular release.

I've also reconsidered my opinion of the "early access" bonus days that some games are offering.  It might be a good strategy because it allows developers to have a smaller number of players interacting with the game and discovering issues/bugs before the full release (and then hopefully addressing these issues).  I just don't think it's worth paying 1/3 more of the price (although there are some parts of the explorers edition that do seem nice--like an additional museum to run).

Happy post-Valentines day (I'm hoping to grab some cheap candy--ha!) and happy gaming!

We've Got Some Dates!

Two of the upcoming titles from my previous post announced their release dates this week!  Here's the lowdown:

Two Point Museum will be released on March 4, 2025.  It's a bit further off than I was hoping--I was pulling for a holiday release--but, oh well.  The announcement also offered up info on the two "editions" of the game.  There's the boring ol' regular edition and the "explorer edition"--there are plenty of goodies to tempt players into the undoubtedly more expensive edition--(see graphic below):

I've never really understood the draw of "you can play x days early," (especially in multiplayer games) but I guess if you ABSOLUTELY cannot wait.  The only part of these additional items that seems good to me is the exclusive map location--I'm assuming this means that there's one bonus museum for you to run.  The rest of it looks like cosmetics and additional items.  What I learned from Two Point Campus is that a lot of these "exclusives" will usually be offered as some kind of bonus later on anyway.  Personally, I will not be forking out the extra cash, but to each his/her/their own.  They're also offering up a bundle of Sonic themed items as a pre-order bonus.

PowerWash Simulator announced that the Shrek themed expansion pack will be releasing on October 10th!  This is great news and I'm very much looking forward to cleaning up the swamp and Duloc.

In completely non-related news, I was a bit bummed to find out that one of my favorite geeky clothing vendors, J!NX clothing, had closed down two years ago (yeah, I'm a bit behind the times).  I was hoping to buy a few new gaming themed t-shirts and I don't buy them too often.  It seems like there aren't a ton of good options out there if you're hoping not to spend a small fortune and go with official merch.  I was eyeballing some stuff on Redbubble but everything I read about the quality of their items was negative (plus, I sort of got the vibe that their stuff is basically graphics that people copy off of the internet and then print onto t-shirts).  FanGamer has some very cool items...but dang if they aren't pricy (like $36 for a t-shirt).  There's also Insert Coin, but it's a similar situation--$$$.  I'll have to keep exploring and see what I can find.

Upcoming Title Excitement!

As summer starts to transition to fall, there's plenty to look forward to--cooler temperatures, pumpkin spice (not for me, but I do enjoy apple cinnamon vibes), and even some upcoming games to play during those rainy, cool days.  A few titles don't have a release date yet, so maybe not the fall, but soon-ish.  I'll highlight a few titles/DLC's that I'm excited about.

1.) Two Point Museum

We've mastered our medical skills in Two Point Hospital and educated the clueless masses in Two Point Campus and now we get to build fantastic museums!  The Two Point games are a personal favorite of mine and are semi-serious management games.  This summer there were a series of in-game challenges that were clues that led to the eventual announcement of Two Point Museum.  Several short videos have rolled out that show various parts of the gameplay.  You get to run, design, and discover artifacts to display in your new museum.  There's also an aquarium section that you can fill with fish, turtles, and other fun aquatic species.  Personally, I'm very excited for this title and am looking forward to finding out more.  Thus far, no release date has been announced.  I'm hoping for a holiday release (because then I will be off work and have plenty of time to dedicate to my awesome museums).  Here's the announcement trailer:

2.) PowerWash Simulator: Shrek Special Pack

If you're feeling a desire to relax and clean a variety of virtual surfaces, PowerWash Simulator is rolling out the perfect DLC.  The best part--it's themed with one of the best movie franchises of the early 2000's!  (I stan Shrek & Shrek 2--they are amazing.  Fight me!)  That's right, we get to clean up Shrek's swamp and other Shrek-themed locations in the upcoming Shrek Special Pack.  Of all the DLC that has come out for PowerWash Simulator, this is the one that has made me the most excited.  (I just noticed the sword sprayer skin and the armor set!)  Apparently the pack will feature 5 maps that include signature locations from across the film franchise.  There's also no release date on this one, but I would anticipate it anywhere from a few weeks until maybe the holiday season. 

3.) Strange Antiquities

The makers of the plant-themed mystery game Strange Horticulture announced Strange Antiquities awhile back and I've been watching for any news.  The news has been sparse, but I very much enjoyed their quirky, clever first game, so I'm definitely looking forward to another strange group of events and people to analyze.  Oh, and also apparently antiquities--no plants this time.  The announcement trailer doesn't reveal much in terms of gameplay, but it looks like we'll be returning to Undermere AND that there's a cute new shop kitty (named Jupiter) to pet.  There's no release date on this one either and it's actually listed as "to be announced" rather than "coming soon," so I'm assuming that it might be a ways further off.

4.) Dragon Age: The Veilguard

I'm listing this as #4 because it is actually a ways down on my excitement list.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Inquisition but BioWare's recent struggles have put a damper on my...let's say expectations.  Since it's a triple-A title there have been numerous teasers, trailers, and gameplay previews released.  From what I've seen, it does look pretty cool.  Also, shockingly, the requirements on PC seem reasonable.  I would say that the fan reaction has been a bit mixed.  Like me, a lot of BioWare fans have a healthy dose of caution when it comes to their recent titles.  I've seen a lot of negative reaction to the fact that you can't control party members (I think you can still issue commands) and it sounds like combat is going to play like Mass Effect: Andromeda with players primarily focusing on controlling their character.  I'm definitely not pre-ordering (c'mon folks, just don't do it!) and will likely wait on this one.  There has been one VERY GOOD piece of news--if you buy it on Steam you will not need to go through the EA App.  Praise the baby cheeses because the stacking launcher problem is stupid and annoying (not to mention that the EA App is a bit notorious for problems).  I'm not gonna lie though--this most recent trailer is AWESOME!  It's got everything to make a Dragon Age fan feel pumped and a little extra--you've got fan favorite returning characters, dragons, a stunning variety of environments, and some pretty fantastic enemies (oh, and some light romancing).  Dragon Age: The Veilguard releases on October 31st--a Halloween treat (let's hope that BioWare pulls it off and we don't wind up feeling tricked instead).