Visual Novels

Refining My Hobbies Makes Me Happy

February 28, 2026February 28, 2026HalsdollLeave a comment

Time is precious. And time is wasted when you are doing something you don’t enjoy. What better way to spend time with something that gives you a little cheer and excitement? My two main hobbies are books and video games, but sometimes I feel like I’m overgeneralizing these two interests. There is a specific genre of book I like to read, and a specific videogame genre I like to play — one that is perfectly catered towards my personality. I feel like I have found a good balance.

With that being said, I am very happy with the books I am currently reading, and I am so excited to add more to the list! Meanwhile, I have also made a list of video games that I am interested in playing! At first, I started playing Demon’s Souls (Ps3), but I realized I couldn’t capture pictures because I didn’t have a capture card. So I put the game aside for now. While playing Demon’s Souls, I recalled reading an interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki, who said Demon’s Souls was inspired by Shadow of the Colossus, which prompted me to wonder what has genDESIGN been up to? Lo and behold!

GenDesign’s Untitled game

Being a fan of Shadow Colossus, ICO, and The Last Guardian, I know I am going to play a good game. The trailer looks amazing!

Another game that I am interested in is Duskbloods, which happens to be an exclusive Switch 2 game. Now, I get the feeling I will be getting myself a Switch 2. I don’t know, though. Over the years, I had grown somewhat tired of FromSoftware games and its vocal fan base. Playing challenging games for the sake of challenge is not my cup of tea. Hopefully, FromSoftware doesn’t forget players like me who play for the environment. If I do become a Switch 2 owner, that would give me an excuse to play Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and 3, as well as other awesome titles.

There are plenty of other games I find interesting, but I highly doubt I will get to play them. For example, I am interested in adding PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid’s Curse.

I played the first installment and appreciate the overall game’s craftsmanship. The art is pretty. The story is also interestingly funny even though it’s a horror visual novel. You could read my honest review here, if you haven’t already: PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo Review–I Found A Good Soap. I was laughing the entire time when I was writing the review. I wonder if readers can tell?

Another game I am interested in adding to my collection is Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. There’s a demo for Kunitsu-Gami, if you are curious. It’s a beautiful and strategic game. I don’t think there is a physical copy, but if you are interested in playing something new by Capcom, it’s worth checking out. I probably will get my copy on PSN because it’s still on sale until March 12, 2026. Although I am sure the Steam version will go on sale again eventually.

*Help carve a path for the Goddess* (screenshot from the demo on Steam)

I suppose I should have titled this blog post Games I Want to Play in 2026 because I already made one for books for this year. However, the entire point was that I found a way to refine my hobbies. Am I going to force myself to complete games and books as if I am on a tight deadline? No. I do what I can without pressure; become more selective of how I spend my time; and play a game based on my mood. This approach makes me happier. As the saying goes, “The tree that bends doesn’t break.”

Now I go to go deal with the Tyrant in Resident Evil Remasted 0…He looks like he spends way too much time in the sewer. Whew, he stinks! Someone could use a good soap.

Steam Thinks It Knows Me and Maybe It Does…

December 21, 2023January 7, 2024Halsdoll4 Comments

I appreciate the spider graph from Steam and think it’s pretty cool to learn about yourself and your gaming habits, but Steam only has a portion of my gaming data. It doesn’t know that I spent a lot of time with action-adventure games on the PlayStation5. One thing it got right though is that I don’t play as many Metrovania games so when I did play Hollow Knight on the PS4 which was part of PlayStation Plus member-free games, I was pretty hooked. It’s a shame though that the PS4 controller broke. Anyway, I learned that it’s not the genre that I enjoy but who makes the game. Like with any creativity, game design is an art form, and a$$holes can’t make good games because they don’t have a heart (Okay. I paraphrase what my photojournalist teacher once said to me that a$$holes can’t take pictures because they don’t have a heart). I think you get the point and remember kids, it’s important to give people the proper credit even if it’s written by a “doll”.

Lately though, I do tend to gravitate toward games that require light reading and pretty visuals, and perhaps, I am a fan of visual novel games and I didn’t even know it! So next year, I probably will be looking into more visual novel games. The only visual novel games that I have played and written reviews for are:

So, that is why I think it’s funny when Steam thinks it knows me! I only took an interest in visual novels a couple of years ago because I was looking for something that has light gameplay. They don’t require a lot of mental energy and that is what’s so relaxing about that type of game. But I would never make a bold statement to say I love visual novel games because I have only played a handful. You see, I love gaming but there are so many types I have yet to play such as otome games. It’s my dream to play every type of games out there so that I can declare myself as the Queen of games LOL (Now, I am just poking fun at myself). I know some game developers look down on games because society thinks they are just toys. I get it. The world will be in trouble if everyone play video games. but the world will also be in trouble when there’s no more coffee, cigarettes and gasoline and of course, the ultimate villain–the internet! As the saying goes, technology is a double edge sword. That is very true. A friend of mine from Bangladesh once asked why do locals like to hike so much? Now you know why… It’s always nice to get some fresh air because if you stay inside your head too much, you will go crazy.

*Someone must be going crazy to make a survival horror video game that takes place in the woods in Washington State. I am talking about* *Alan Wak*e *that is.* *From what I remember you just run in the woods…Now that I think about it, that some intense forest bathing.*

I think ramble on too long about games and cracking jokes that only I might get. I just want to make up for the time I did not publish last week.

P.S.

I was looking through my old pictures. Around this time of year in 2019, I was at the Living Computer Museum in Seattle. I don’t consider myself a techy person, but growing up in the Greater Seattle area, like most kids, I picked up on video games because it was in front of me to play and it sure brings a smile to my face. You see, video game is a product. It doesn’t define a person’s integrity. So it’s hard for me to say, “We are what we play.”