Site Update – April 2021
Hey folks!
This is just a little update in case you were wondering about what’s been going on with the website. As usual, I’ve been busy with IRL things to be able to make time to publish content on the site.
Luckily, that hasn’t stopped me from at least finding time to enjoy the fun things related to gaming. Here are some of the things I’ve been doing since the last update.
Stardew Valley
It’s hard to believe that it has been 5 years since the release of this wholesome indie game. My girlfriend and I have been enjoying the multiplayer, while even dabbling in modding. I’ve been working on a game guide in the meantime, so that I can see which strategies work best.
Breath of the Wild
I’ve started playing Breath of the Wild once again, only this time, it is on Master Mode. The game was certainly challenging enough when I first started playing it back on launch date, but this time around, I want to try and actually complete everything 100% (except for Korok Seeds, maybe?)
Mario Maker 2
On Easter Sunday, we spent time with my girlfriend’s family, and it was then that I learned that her two little nephews enjoyed Nintendo games. Even better, they enjoyed Super Mario. It’s a good thing I brought Mario Maker 2 with me! I detached my two joy-cons, handed them over, and watched as two little brothers played Super Mario, just as I had done over 25 years ago with my own brother.
Steam Link
This is one of the newest things I’ve started trying out. Ever since Google Stadia came out, I’ve always wondered if there was a way for me to play my games on my TV… And that’s when I remembered Steam Link.
There was a time when Steam had released a special streaming box that allowed a PC to wirelessly stream Steam games to a TV. The concept was amazing, but sadly, this streaming box was discontinued in favor of an app instead.
Steam Link (the app, that is) is essentially an app that your phone, tablet, and smartTV can install and use instead of relying on actual hardware to stream games. This is great and all, but for people like myself who don’t own a smartTV? Not ideal. It’s times like this that make me wish I could have bought the Steam Link box when it came out.
Luckily, I found a workaround, with the help of Google’s newest Chromecast. This handy streaming device not only allowed me to use all of my favorite streaming services, but I was even able to download Steam Link, and after some tinkering, I got it working with my gaming PC.
Borderlands 3
After getting Steam Link working through my Chromecast, it was time to do some stress tests. As far as PC gaming goes, the most recent PC game I own is Borderlands 3, and since I can run it well enough on my newly built rig, it seems only natural to test out Steam Link using one of the more recently released games I own.
Not going to lie, the game did have some lag, likely because I was using the Chromecast through Wi-Fi, as opposed to a faster Ethernet connection. But it was at the very least playable. I wouldn’t rely on it for multiplayer.
Life is Strange
I’ve been wanting to get my girlfriend into the story of this award-winning episodic series for quite some time now. And since I can now play my entire Steam library on the TV, it was time to test this game out and see how well it performed through Steam Link. After testing out Borderlands 3, I was pleasantly surprised with how much better this game was able to be streamed wirelessly. Mind you, it is an older game with dated visuals, so that might be a factor.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this post.
Have fun, as always.
~Ken