iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Rolled credits on Silver Pines. Easily one of my favourite games this year! Scratched that classic survival horror itch like nothing else has in a long time. Beautifully weird and atmospheric. Found the ending to be a bit wet but if I let that affect my feelings my 2026 list will be really short

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I am LOVING Silver Pines. The survival horror stuff is really good but I’m surprised at how weird it is. All of the characters are fascinating. Also I think a cat is astral projecting?

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Reeeally digging Silver Pines. Between this, SH Townfall, Project Songbird and the first half of RE Requiem it’s been a good year for horror!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

On October 24th at 2pm UK Time I’ll be joining @pimscrypt.bsky.social’s LIVE reading of the original script for Saw 1 to raise money for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund! Save the date!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Sure I’ll find time over the next few days

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Oh don’t get me wrong I loved all of that stuff! I also - again - really really love it. But DS1 is one of my all-time favourite games. DS2 feels like there are gaps I wish it would fill (too much focus on combat over cool traversal being the main one.)

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

As a fellow DS2 lover, it struggles to compete with DS1 if you play them close together. Still a fucking delight though!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Sharing in case other essayists don’t know about this. It rocks!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Absolutely will! It’s my GOTY. However I’m waiting to see if there are story expansions first because I didn’t love the ending and hoping to have my mind changed on it. Critique won’t be until late next year at the earliest. I WILL be covering it on Lore Dump early 2027 though!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I’m definitely getting stronger/faster/etc! The game is also kicking my ass. Been playing for about 3 hours and not hit the Act 1 boss yet. Too busy experimenting! I feel like early game is purposefully tough to force you to unlock the three vehicles and I don’t mind that - the loop’s too fun!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

The reviews weren’t wrong about Galactic Racer. Shockingly good game so far.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Aside from skin graft tech, we never saw what made the Manhunters dangerous, nor did we see Hal and Sinestro together. Both feel like unintentional gaps.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I really really liked the season finale of Lanterns - and love this John Stewart - but don’t care at all for how they’ve handled Sinestro. Also feel like there have been weird cuts and obvious budget issues which means we’re missing an episode’s worth of visual storytelling.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Ah this answers my question - thanks!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

What’s the feeling by fans on the TV Movie? Watch after the show?

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Uhh.. the tv series on Netflix? Am I watching the wrong one?

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I don’t care for Mech stuff will I like this

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Alright FINE I’m watching Neon Genesis Evangelion god dammit Remedy

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Still one of my favourites this year - grab it for spooky season if you haven’t played it yet

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Definitely not for people like you. Just frustrated by - specifically men - making a victim’s pain about them.

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Reposted by Monty Zander

Pixel a Day @pixeladay.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

This is the exact phenomenon that creates the sense of “conspicuous missingness” (at least for those sensitive to these things) that I talk about in regards to the video games scene in my video What Is the Games Industry Missing? youtu.be/9JbfFYUVR-U?...

youtu.be

What Is the Games Industry Missing?

YouTube video by Pixel a Day

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

We're back with Part 2 of Yakuza: Like A Dragon on Lore Dump! Somehow they fucked it up. youtu.be/vTEj3b2eiac

youtu.be

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Story Explained (The Middle)

YouTube video by Lore Dump

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I know EXACTLY where you’re at and it’s just perfect man.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

WALTER WHERE ARE YOU WALTER THIS IS THE 4TH HIDEOUT IVE CHECKED

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I have! Loved it. Currently my game of the year. Started NG+ recently. Mixed on the ending but hoping we get some DLC announced that colours it in a bit

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Coming soon. I didn’t like it. Brilliant thumbnail by @hotcyder.bsky.social

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

100% - and honestly, “watch a first time Resi player bumble through an adventure” got kinda stale after 30 minutes!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Cregger’s Resident Evil movie is good, not great. His worst film, and I think people wouldn’t have glazed it half as much if his name wasn’t attached to it. That ending - woof. After a great 75 minutes of practical effects, the last 15 devolves into very ugly CGI that did not work for me.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I’m not sure I’m prepared for these Control: Resonant reviews to drop. Got everything crossed it does well.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Took a while for me to reconcile with the fact we’re sniffing out whiskey bottles specifically. This isn’t ’Logan likes a drink’ it’s ’Logan drinks through his trauma’ and that part of his character is relegated to a collectathon.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Cons: Logan and Jean’s closing minutes. What a dogshit ending. I HATE this combat. Truly learned to despise its sponginess, its camera, its visual noise, its lack of mechanical bite. The story is painfully predictable and hopelessly convoluted.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Dude what the fuck was that ending. 5/10. Pros: Jean and Wolverine. Baker’s Essex. The animations are gorgeous.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

You can dodge them, but Wolverine’s combat is focused on 1-2-1 brawling because stagger gauges are so important. You also don’t want to be NOT fighting because your rage meter drops. And these fuckers CONSTANTLY interrupt that flow. They’re not difficult, just turn fights into attrition battles.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Though frankly the combat is the bigger problem. If you’re going to spam me with unblockable ranged enemies, you need to give Wolverine a bigger leap attack.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

If you think Wolverine’s Smell-O-Vision looked forgivable in the reviews, just wait until you get to Japan. Half this section is following smells.

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Reposted by Monty Zander

Austin Kelmore @austinkelmore.com · 10/09/2026

Closing out the rally, @nershly.bsky.social beautifully speaks about her experience being fired by Rockstar and how they try to use fear.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I Made My Wife Play Silksong For The First Time youtu.be/zGq_TAw45qs This was the hardest challenge yet. Gorgeous thumbnail by @hotcyder.bsky.social!

youtu.be

I Made My Wife Play Silksong For The First Time

YouTube video by Noobus Humanus

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Reposted by Monty Zander

Tauriq Moosa @tauriq.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Hello hello, decided I'm just going to start writing my essays on my own thing, instead of bottling them. Here's my first on Dawnwalker's use of time as narrative tool

criticalverdict.beehiiv.com

Why The Blood of Dawnwalker's time mechanic is better than you realise

Far from being a hindrance, making time a finite resource shapes stories and undermines the idea of open-world bloat

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

The writing, characters and world building is really really wonderful!

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

For anyone curious I had 3 days left, level 35, feel I did all the substantial quests, and Brencis was doable on normal. I followed Lacra’s ending. I feel like a lot of my choices impacted how it played out.

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Rolled credits on Blood of Dawnwalker. Fantastic. Loved it. It’s also greater than the sum of its parts. Lots for the team to iterate in a sequel (adding stealth, cosmetics, weapon and enemy variety) but they’re exciting opportunities for a cool series, not big issues here.

static.klipy.com

Blood Of The Dawnwalker Pocket Sand

ALT: Blood Of The Dawnwalker Pocket Sand

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

THE EPIC CONCLUSION TO ONE A REMAKE OF ONE OF GAMING’S BEST STORIES! NOW WITH ADDED FEATURES LIKE - SKIP CUTSCENE! Who was this state of play even for man

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Monty Zander @montyzander.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Already feel like they’re overdoing the marketing for FF7-3

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