Fairly excited and confident I'll land this job. I'm just wondering if anybody here has experience with this type of job? I believe the pay is over $15 so regardless of how crappy it is I want it. But if anyone here has any insight on the job itself please let me know!!!!

I'm curious because I know that some firms focus on specific industries depending on the city and the firm size.
Like if you're in the boston area and you work for pwc or deloitte you'll get to audit tech and financial services industries, versus being in las vegas where you'll likely work in the casino and hopsitality industry.
My question is if I work in Las vegas doing this type of auditing and say I want to switch to tech auditing at another big 4, is the switch easy? i'd like to keep my position as opposed to getting demoted to say an experienced hire.

How was management? Did the wage pay for the work done? What could your employer have done to make the job more enjoyable?
What kind of jobs can a person with casino experience consider after casino employment?

I want to preface that the contents of this post is for informational purposes. I do not condone or approve of any harassments or witch-hunting or the attacking of anybody.
 
Richard Lewis recently did a stream talking about the terrible state of CS esports and I thought it was an important stream anyone who cares about the CS community should listen to.
Vod Link here: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/830415547
I realize it is 3 hours long so I took it upon myself to create a list of interesting points from the stream so you don't have to listen to the whole thing, although I still encourage you to do so if you can.
I know this post is still long but probably easier to digest, especially in parts.
Here is a link to my raw notes if you for some reason want to read through this which includes some omitted stuff. It's in chronological order of things said in the stream and has some time stamps. https://pastebin.com/6QWTLr8T

Intro

• "The last month has convinced me, that we are going to be heading into a dark place for Counter-Strike esports in 2021."
  • "I think I've seen the scene essentially kill itself."
• "For the past 5 to 6 years, we've basically been in a holding pattern of people coming into our game wanting to run it, wanting to run all of the esports and wanting to profiteer and its been sort of a concerted effort to drive them off and push them away."
  • "We're spread way too thin."
• "If Riot don't get involved and stop the scumbags that have moved over to Valorant from getting their feet under the table, Valorant is going to have real problems."
• RL thinks too much has happened all at once for us to do anything except watch it play out, like:
  • Recent CSPPA strike against BLAST
  • ESIC failures and them not being supported enough
  • Teams cheating i.e. coaches/bugs
  • Widespread match fixing
  • The Pandemic
    • "People who try to hold bubble events are so incompetent and fuck up and people get the 'rona and its their fault."
    • "People who say Flashpoint is a bubble is full of shit and is a lie and people are now suffering for that lie."
      • "To save money they let people go home and break the bubble for a week."
      • "Not just Flashpoint peoples decision, they have a partner that handles the production." (hinting FACEIT)
      • "People are trapped in hotels essentially under house arrest because of COVID restrictions and has fucked peoples lives up."
• "It's all too much, all of this incompetence, all of this greed, maybe we ride it out."
  • RL says he has talked to the Riot devs (the ones working on Valorant) and says, "They are so cognizant of all the fuck ups and all the problems we have in Counter-Strike."
    • He continues to say that this is factored into their business plan and that we never had a competitor, but just so happens to have one coincide, when we are at our worst.

CSPPA - Counter-Strike Professional Players' Association

"Who does this union really fucking serve?"

• RL believes that the CSPPA is a mockery.
  
  • He points out the hypocrisy that they wouldn't strike for the pros who were kicked out of ESL Pro League, or for Jamppi or dream3r.
    • He also says ESL paid CSPPA and are racketeering and many other TOs have to pay them to get their "seal of approval"
      • He says they would strong-arm TOs saying "well if you don't give us the money, these guys are so we'll just have to commit to playing their event."
    • Also points out that they will strike against a competitor they are not in agreement with (Flashpoint)
    • RL: "It's what it says about every other time you haven't done it and it's about every time you don't do it now moving forward." "The issues they've chosen to ignore this year alone are embarrassing."
    • Then he points out that there was no strike for Valve qualifiers even if we have no major but Jamppi and dream3r can't play in them.
      • "and Valve have said 'Oh yeah we know actually their stories are accurate, Jamppi didn't cheat, now in a legally binding document. Yep dream3r did have his account hacked in a LAN café', but they still can't play. Where is the fucking solidarity? Gone. Doesn't exist. It's not important [because] it doesn't affect you." "That's what the union does right now, it looks after all the tier 1 people."
• He says the CSPPA doesn't represent all players all the time and has driven a divide where you have the haves and have-nots
  
  • "We have a tier of players that operate with impunity and do not help their tier 2 or tier 3 players out at all." "If you are not a tier 1 player you do not matter, they don't event ask your opinion."
  • He tells chrisJ to admit and own the fact that the reason he didn't speak up during the ESL Pro League debacle is because it didn't affect him
  • "They are looking after some players at the expense of other players. How the fuck is that a union?"
• He says the BLAST situation is a reasonable dispute and supports the players but is not the right time for a strike and have not even identified the correct enemy
  
  • He thinks players are lashing out now due to previous incidents and are upset that BLAST are working with ESIC
    • He stated that CSPPA shouldn't beefing with ESIC and they should be working in harmony
  • He says what they need to do is talk with the teams/organizations that have sold that right to BLAST
    • RL: "Your employers, the people who pay you that massive exorbitant salaries, when you don't stream and you don't do interviews and you offer no value beyond your ability to click heads and you get 25k dollars a month." "Why don't you talk to them about it? Oh right. You're happy to take away BLAST's paper, but you don't want to risk your own."
  • "I am seeing such unbelievable cowardice from the players here with the battles you choose."
  • "Where was the strike action when in the qualifiers for the world championship, there were teams and players engaged in huge conflicts of interest?" "Where was the strike action when your image rights were taken and sold to every league you've ever been in every union type organization you've ever been associated with like, WESA, to your org every time you sign a contract, to the leagues you play in."
    • "Your image rights are essentially worthless now, there's about 10 fucking separate parties that have them, and how many of them are giving you anything for it? Not much pretty much your org by the way."
    • "That's a big issue. Your image is you, your image is your brand. What are you doing about that? Nothing."
• He is also angry at SirScoots who is "popping off" at people on Twitter who all want the same thing, which is 'A unified Counter-Strike scene for everybody, that works for everybody, that has a sustained ecosystem that nourishes everybody.' "We don't have that now."
  
• He also says their rankings are a joke
  
  • "Just so happened, oh look TACO, that very important prominent member of the board, we pushed his team artificially up when they weren't even in the fucking top 20, not by a long shot."
• He also says the ineptitude of the CSPPA cost Flashpoint a monitor sponsor
  
• "Is it really a player association or is it like a fucking agency at this point"
  

ESIC - Esports Integrity Commission

"They have been put in an impossible position."

• RL says that Ian Smith, the founder of ESIC and who was done work in mainstream sports, is a good and honorable man who has dedicated his life to integrity and sports. He takes on both sides, ensuring match fixers are punished, but also doing appeals and ensuring those punishments were fair.
• "ESIC is a tiny organization" and are in need of money, "They didn't run a grift like the CSPPA did."
  • "Saying 'you want our support and you want the players to turn up you better pay us.' They don't do that."
  • "Had startup seed money from MTG and since then they've been pecking shit with the hens."
    • Ian Smith made sure that the money given by MTG (Modern Times Group, parent company of ESL, ESEA, DreamHack) was nothing more than startup money and wouldn't be in debt to them
      • Ian Smith sat down with other TO's not part of MTG and wanted to partner with them. They declined and called ESIC "ESL spies and we will never align ourselves with you"
  • "They only were just able to afford, hiring a PR guy on a full time salary to deal with the press and send out those releases you've seen, this year."
    • "They have a tiny group of staff investigating these things and they have taken on the biggest problems in our scene: the cheating, the match fixing."
• ESIC have had "unprecedented levels of cheating to deal with, because there's something wrong with our scene ever since we went online. There's something wrong with it, everyone's lost their fucking pride and self-respect and they got no passion for it anymore, so they think fuck it, what's in it for me?"
  • He calls out coaches who are talking about players rights when they would rob and steal from them.
    • Also says more coaches being banned are coming
    • He also points out flaws in community's reaction to the punishments to coaches bans: "Half of the cunts still have jobs and some of the cunts got new jobs. We didn't even shun the cheating coaches."
• ESIC have "found I think another 2 or 3 exploits like that one and they are investigating them all right now, it's going on right now."
  
  • "I know that there are going to be more names getting banned, again."
  • "So they're doing that on a skeleton crew while, investigating 3 continents worth of match fixing in MDL and semi-pro level CS." "They're doing this with half a dozen people." "They don't have any money or any help. People barely even fucking cooperate with them, they are treated like pariahs. It's ridiculous."
    • "Why are the CSPPA popping off at ESIC on my Twitter timeline, when you should be working together." "because its all about what's in it in for me." "2020, the online era of CS: 'What is in it for me?' How can I cheat, how can I get my paper, how can I bleed this scene one last time before I fuck off and play shooty shooty bang bang Riot Games babys first fps."
• RL says that in the CIS region, teams have gone to tournaments and have been eliminated multiple times by the same team. We found out they were cheating and those players who lost, have been cut from their roster, careers ended because of cheaters.
  

Stream Sniping

"They're all at it in the online era, they're all at it, they're all cheating, they're all using exploits, probably that see through smoke bug got used a bunch of times"

• RL talks about how there is no integrity from dead (the player), always denying when caught doing something
  • On the topic of 'BLAST never said we couldn't stream snipe': "Lies, BLAST never said you could do that, they had to sort of retcon it." "because what happened after that they fucking started snitching and squealing"
    • "Suddenly you had like, 10 of the top 15 teams in the world, staring into the abyss of being banned for 6-12 months in line with ESIC recommendations."
      • He says that ESIC was put in a tough situation and couldn't enforce the bans because it would have resulted in killing CS. What resulted was, BLAST, ESIC, and teams came together and gave them a warning and told them, in RL's words "don't do this again or you're gonna get got."
        • He then says the top teams brushed this off and didn't give a fuck
        • The new MiBR team playing Flashpoint, that wasn't involved in the previous incidents are doing it again (stream sniping). He gave credit to Flashpoint for the quick resolution and punishment and respect for cogu's response to the situation.
        • "ESIC came out and said, once more, 'Guys, zero tolerance from now on.'" RL then got upset at community's reaction calling ESIC "pussies" for their non enforcement and said if we want competitive CS we cant ban the top 10 teams.
• He points out how players have no integrity and will do anything for an edge as long as they won't get detected or banned or it's within a grey area.
• "All of this shit was mad avoidable, even in the pandemic era."
  • He talks about why aren't we filming them. Why aren't there representatives for leagues and tournaments making sure players aren't cheating?

Match Fixing

"How many years have we let our scene be fucking pillaged by these greedy cunts?" "We just let it happen."

• RL says that gambling and skins betting which existed in moderation was "accelerated and blown up by the Call of Duty greedy fucks."
  • "Never forget TmarTn was on the board of EnVyUs." "His website, CSGOLotto, they had a bunch of off-the-books sponsorships." "NBK promoted them. People forget."
• "Those people who had access to the skins, go to the players" "Even people like s1mple, best player in the world, even he scammed knives and skins off fucking fans."
• Owners of skin casino sites would approach pros and lend them skins to use in tournaments and possibly keep them after reaching a deal
  • Players would tip off inside info about matches and teams in exchange for skins. Info such as: roster changes, how they played in scrims
    • They would use this info to bet and subvert the odds on their sites. "That happened religiously, I can't even tell you how many times it happened."
      • "I had access to the biggest database of information, from an inside betting circle in NA, and it would take information and screenshots from other pro players, who were feeding them info in exchange for money or skins."
        • "Some of these players are still playing." "Incredibly, there are players still in the CSPPA today, complaining about the BLAST recordings, that were embroiled in this murky shit back then."
• RL also says that there were tournaments where teams contrived with each other, who should throw, who should win.
• "There's a handful of people that are trying to fucking clean it up, and you think you get something over the line and you see something like the CSPPA and it's run by corrupt fucking chuckle heads, and now you've got another corrupt body you have to fight on a fucking daily basis, it's demoralizing."
  • "It's too far gone. Our entire semi-professional scene is compromised."
• "It's rife guys, I'm not going to lie any more. It's not just China, it's not just Russia, it's here, it's NA, it's Europe, it's Australia, so much more than you think, so much more than we can prove."
  • "I get sent chat logs all the time […] and they're morons, these players, short-sighted, amateur, morons and they're doing it on WhatsApp." People would get cut from the bets because they want to make more money, then they leak the logs. He says, from the chat logs, they spread "little" bets across every site they can (400 to 1k dollars) to prevent shifting odds
• He says the scumbags who've fucked off to Valorant will do the same there if Riot doesn't do something and says Valorant "is an esports scene heading for a very early fall based on the sheer volume of scumbags that are already there."
• "That's tier 2 CS in a nutshell these days. They know they're never going to play in a major, so what's the punishment?"
  • "All of these tier 2 fucks that are fixing games now they are like the fucking mafia compared to iBuyPower" "These guys are working with organized criminals to fix entire seasons worth of games. That's what's going on in your tier 2 CS."
• "I'm literally being told that there are players fixing games at all levels of Chinese esports and motherfuckers with guns are turning up to team houses and stuff."

North America

"Everyone in NA has left we've lost a continents worth of support during this pandemic and Valve haven't said a fucking word."

• RL says the Call of Duty "goblins" that destroyed CS for years are the same people who are now trying to leave CS. "The nerve to treat a game where the fans, and the community, and the TO's were nothing but good to you." "To just kick the players out now and go and leave and say 'It just doesn't make financial sense.' Oh you'll slither back when we have a major though for them stickers won't you."
• There's a cascading effect in NA where people don't bother with CS anymore and people like Chaos suffer.
• He says NA team owners are incompetent for always wanting it easy and always wanting a guarantee on their investment without skill or nuance.
  • RL says he would be able to market a team correctly and would have a good ROI and also points out how TSM wouldn't even be bothered to tweet that their team, which was one of the best in the world, was playing at the Major.
  • He also says not all NA owners are like that, compliments and respects Jason Lake who nearly lost everything to keep Complexity going.
• He then calls out the incompetence in Infinite Esports when they acquired OpTic Gaming and bought an Indian CS team.
  • He says HECZ is not to blame here and that they couldn't tell forsaken was cheating when it was so obvious.
    • They measured his reaction time to the likes of dev1ce and s1mple
    • When an enemy showed up on his screen he won that duel something like 44% of the time
    • "was like the number 1 player in the world statistically"
    • He brought a laptop to their bootcamp and refused to use the high end PCs that hey provided
• He respects Andy Miller (NRG CEO) and HECZ but says that the attitude of not being able to easily monetize their teams is "piss weak" and there needs to be a risk.
  • He says Chaos EC shouldn't be cutting their roster and should be competent enough to be able to figure out how to make money off their team.
• He says there are still opportunities in NA and people are panicking and pulling out, and says Valorant will be the same if not worse.
  • He also says "bums" who couldn't even get out of groups in NA competitions, are making crazy money in Valorant and says it will continue to inflate.
• He also said that he heard rumors that EG (Evil Geniuses) are done.
• He also thinks that the rumors of a Valve franchised league from before was sparked up from "these lazy fabled weak NA fucking team owners basically trying to see if Valve would bite at the hook if it was dangled and they didn't"
  • Slasher says NA team owners are really in favor of franchised leagues because they want to make more money. "Most of the powerful team owners right now are on board with ditching this third party organization structure, or they are trying to play this power politics with all the TOs, and that is contributing to a lot of the problems there"
• RL says that Riot has proved they can run a franchised league (LCS) and will be profitable in 2021 which is what a lot of team owners care about and says the competition will only serve to snatch people away from CS.
• RL continues to say, "I am so sick and tired of what we have done to this scene, I am just exhausted with it." "I think we have legitimately fucked it, I really think we have. I think we're staring into almost like a CGS (Championship Gaming Series) wasteland in NA." "Counter-Strike esports is a fucking joke."

Talent

"TO's have treated CS talent like absolute human garbage for years now."

• RL says that people like Sean Gares and ddk switching over to Valorant isn't for financial reasons because they are making less over there.
• He points out that TO's can't even give talent a 3 month in advance calendar.
• Because of the pandemic TO's won't hire certain people and some people are working more hours for the same money.
• He says we as a community don't respect journalists enough which is why we don't have good journalists.
  • He also says DeKay is leaving the scene soon and that Thorin is close to leaving also
• He says he had to talk a caster down from quitting and was struggling to find reasons.
• He says that DreamHack told Vince they would hire him but not if he wants to stick with dusT and says that this is the norm in esports. "Constant leveraging of people against each other." and says this is why we don't have a talent union.
• New gen casters are getting put into shit situations and the community's reaction to them is adding fuel to the fire
• He says the reason Moses left was because of the terrible conditions
• He says that Anders had to constantly leave his family and kid because someone fucked up or broke promises and had to constantly tell his kid to their face that "daddy can't be home this weekend."
• He says that esports has always been a lie to sell you this dream, "Meanwhile there's about 2% of the cunts getting all the checks."

Valve

"Anything that Riot does, is better than Valve's inaction"

• Slasher says that the larger aspect of esports as a whole compared to other entertainment mediums and Valve's lack of inattention are the bigger problems. He continues saying that the fact that Valve let their game be ran as an esport, they need to take on the responsibilities of it.
  • Both Slasher and RL wants Valve to take control but not on the level of Riot Games, there needs to be a balance.
• In case it was ever a question: Gabe Newell has been to 0 CSGO Majors.
• RL calls Valve out saying they could have done something during the gambling era.
• He says Valve used to come to the majors, but doesn't think they do anymore.
• RL had met with Valve at the Cluj-Napoca Major and had tried to appeal iBP's indefinite punishment and had also gave Brax's life story:
  • A recent family member passed away, they had lost a lot of income, they had to live in trailer, iBuyPower did not pay any salaries, and was pressured by family to make money who didn't support his career.
  • RL said that Valve told him, "How dare you try and make us feel guilty." "We shouldn't feel bad about enforcing the only thing that matters that we need to make players afraid of: cheating and match fixing"
  • RL also tried to share other info about match fixing and nothing came of it
• RL points out that Source 2 or a new engine is not something you will want based on the experience of transitioning from CS 1.6 to CS:S. "Valve's track record with brand new engines being launched, not fucking great from what I remember."
• Slasher says "If there is anything the community should do, is pressure Valve to hire a community manager."
  • They say that we need a commissioner, a community manager (not the person who runs the Twitter who posts memes all day), then we need to have a circuit
• RL reiterates that Valve doesn't care about CS esports and says they need to change the culture at Valve to make them care about CS esports
  • Slasher says a systemic problem is making it so working on CSGO would be a bad decision for you as an employee for Valve
• He also hasn't talked to Valve in ages and have sent over bugs and cheats and doesn't get emails back anymore
• Slasher says we should be directing attention at the developer leads, pointing out Ido Magal, if he even is still the project lead
  • RL thinks that Ido and Brian are the only people that "vaguely even give a fuck about CS" and were the only people that RL recalled that actually read Reddit and paid attention from time to time
• "It is really fucking precarious. Somebody has got to step the fuck up and start giving a shit"
  • Slasher suggests org owners, with CSPPA, with ESIC, with TOs have a concerted effort against Valve
• "Riot Games are doing better things than Valve in the esports space" which is something RL didn't think he'd say.
• "People who used to be talent, working with unions, arguing with other talent, when the unions fucked them over, can't understand their perspective, TOs fucking over broadcast talent, broadcast talent wanting to leave and go and work for orgs, orgs having no money, Valve might take coaches away because all the coaches are cheating, ESIC has about 4 people in a fucking call doing the investigations, everyone thinks they're spies for ESL, ESL are just the evil fucking overlords wanting to rule the scene and will just somehow, like cockroaches outliving a nuclear bomb, and Valve are in a fucking holiday in Hawaii thinking about the next Dota character because they don't give a fuck about us."

Closing Statements

"We've peaked. If we want to sustain and exist, now is the time to figure it out. No esports lasts as long as this, we've already done 8 years. We've already broke the records. We have got to figure out a way to coexist and drive the negative forces out and we need to do it as a collective and we're not doing that."

• RL compared the Counter-Strike scene to the people on the Titanic who ran around with guns robbing people while the boat was sinking.
• "We have given up on being a respectable esports scene." "We are now a conduit to make money for those who want to just milk it, just have one last ride, one last roll of the dice. It's done." "What a fucking mess. What have we done to our fucking scene?"
• "There's just too much self-interest driving all of this." "I don't see a way we stop the dominoes." "When it's that bad, when there's that many dishonest people that ESIC have to come out and say that if we punish them all there's no one left. What does that tell you?"
• "How many opportunities have we had to clean house? How many times have we said, 'this must never happen again', and another scandal." "The entire skins betting operations was the biggest criminal conspiracy in esports ever executed and no one has been punished for it." "The people who could be driving that don't want to."
• "Right now people are fans of those organizations because the scene has value. It is worth being a fan of Astralis because they are excellent at Counter-Strike. It is worth being a fan of s1mple because he is the best player in Counter-Strike, maybe the exception of ZywOo. If the scene is devalued, if the scene loses its meaning, those things lose its meaning too, and people will leave, people will stop tuning into the games. I have seen it happen in multiple esports, this is not my first time at the rodeo. I am getting big Brood War vibes right now and I don't like it."
• "The role you play in all of this as fans, as viewers, as listeners, as consumers of esports content, it's absolutely imperative that you know who the good guys are. It's absolutely imperative that you use your voice. It's absolutely imperative that when things are bad, you know who, at least, is trying to make them good, and you have to apply your criticism to the right targets."
  • He continues saying it's no good in continuing to attack ESIC and saying how they are bad, ESIC have it hard
• He says CSPPA are on the right side of the argument on BLAST but have been on the wrong side of many arguments many times.
  • "If you are not willing to stand along side the weakest member of the union, with the least amount of influence, and the least amount of power, then it is not a union at all and you shouldn't pose as one." "You wanna serve a bunch of special interest do it, everyone else in esports fucking does, but do not pose as something you are not." "We love the players. I've been fighting for players rights for as long as I've been able to, but the CSPPA is not what we needed."
    • "They are not applying the pressure to the right people, they are not fighting the right battles, they are not helping their weaker members."
• He says what orgs have done by keeping or hiring coaches is bad. "When you give up on holding an appreciable standard, you've lost the scene" "Competition matters, rules matter, punishments matter, achievements matter, excellence matters" "If you start stripping that away, you have nothing" "You guys need to take that knowledge and apply it sensibly."
• "Valve has sold you all down the river, they sold everyone in the esports scene down the river, tournament organizers are selling their talent down the river. Don't hate on them for sounding tired after a 16 hour day. Don't hate on them because the hype for a matchup they've seen for the 20th time in the past 3 months, they can't be as excited or it sounds contrived. Support your guys, they're there for you, these are your people."
• "This community has got to start acting like one for the first fucking time. Just put the petty shit away, let's try and fix this fucking scene while we still have one to save."
• "You can't rely on Valve, you can't rely on ESL, you can't rely on the CSPPA, you can't rely on anyone." "Once again, it's gonna be the likes of us, the amateurs, the people who give a fuck, rolling up our sleeves and grafting." "I'm old and tired and I don't want to have to do it again. People need to pick up the torch and do it."
  • "Like Michal did, like Dudenhoeffer did. You see something wrong, fix it. You see somebody doing something wrong, call it out. If you think something could be better, let people know."
• "Vote with your wallets if you're not happy with the direction Valve goes in. If when we do get to the Major, they serve up another subpar, same old bullshit stickers and signatures package again, do not buy it."
  • "You're a powerful block and if you use it correctly we can fucking avert this disaster."
• "I'm not doing another year in this broken, bust-up fucking scene, where everyone is miserable, everyone is broke, everyone is tired, and everyone is trying to fucking rob everyone else, blind, while the fucking people who are meant to be protecting you, are just fucking enhancing it and lining their own pockets."
  • "I'm not doing it anymore and you shouldn't want to do it either."
• "I stand by every fucking thing I said. I mean it, because this game fucking matters to me, this scene fucking matters to me. I put my life into this, my adult life, and to see it in this state is fucking sad."

throwaway, also on mobile if that matters
I (16F), got a job a few months ago. It's been nice having extra money, and as of right now it's all mine because I don't have any bills or responsibilities. I am also starting to save for a car.
My mom (37y.o) has never been the saving type, lives paycheck to paycheck and uses credit cards instead of a savings account. She isn't a gambling addict but, any extra money she has goes to the casino. She also frequently borrows hundreds at a time from my grandmother to throw in a slot machine.
I highly disagree with this lifestyle and want more financial security in my life when I get older. If there's ever an emergency, my mom either has to use her nearly maxed out credit cards or borrow money from my grandma which only causes more stress and debt. [One of her biggest stressors is her car, for some reason she has the worst luck and has to put a few hundred into it every few months, which she uses her credit card for.]
Whenever I comment on it she says it's her money and I have no right to be in her business because her bills are paid on time and there's food on the table, so after a while I left it alone.
My problem started a while ago when she low-key asked me to borrow money to go to the casino. I laughed it off and said no, but I've had a bad feeling ever since. The other day she asked if I'd let her borrow a few hundred if something happened to her car, and I said yes but I really don't like the idea.
I don't want her to start borrowing money from me like she does my grandma, I don't want her financial irresponsibility to be my problem, especially as I enter adulthood. She could easily have a savings account but chooses not to. I also don't want to borrow money from her ever because I hope to plan my finances in a way that provides stability and backup plans that don't include other people. On the other hand though, she has provided everything I've needed and plenty more throughout my life. I can't tell if I'm just being a selfish, entitled daughter.
So I guess my question would be, is this sort of money-borrowing relationship something that should be expected as I start having an income? And would I be the asshole for cutting her off from my income entirely?
sorry if I rambled alot, im not the best at summarizing
Edits: I'd like to clarify because I might've given her too bad of a rep, she would never steal my money. If I borrowed her money she'd give it back at tax time. (which would maybe be okay now, in December, but say she tries this stuff in march or something- I am really not comfortable waiting a whole year) That being said though, since she's more comfortable with my grandma, she'll try to persuade my grandma to let her keep some of the money instead of having to pay it back, and my grandma lets her sometimes. And I don't want her to expect that sort of treatment from me, ever. At the same time though she's poured thousands into me over my lifetime so maybe giving her a few hundred wouldn't be the worst... I don't know
Edit 2: I see alot of people saying if she really NEEDS the money, I should give it to her. But my thing is- she always would've had the money, she just allotted it poorly and is now in a bad situation. It's not like she doesn't make enough for the things she needs, she just chooses to spend her money elsewhere so idk. Does that still count? like I feel like maybe I'd be more open to helping her out of bad situations if she actually attempted to change her lifestyle but it seems like money down the drain when I know she's just gonna do it again. She's a very stubborn lady haha
edit 3: oh my god everyone is calling my mother an addict. I dunno how to feel about that. maybe here ill provide some more specific numbers because maybe you guys are picturing something worse. I'll let you decide
so before covid, she'd go to bingo (lmao bingo) around twice a week. Each session costs $100-200 and atleast part of it each time would be borrowed from my grandma I think. every year when she gets her tax returns she pays off some of her bills and uses pretty much the rest for slots, which is more expensive (she'd reasonably spend $2k on it probably, whether all at once or not) since covid only slots are open so when she can borrow money from my g-ma she will go with her.
I think my grandma likes this system because she doesn't get that much taxes back anymore, but now she gets a big wad of cash from her daughter (probably around $3k?)
I dunno I might've overexaggerated it in my original statement. It's probably self destructive because she doesn't have the money for it, but Im not so sure it's gambling addict behavior. You would think addicts would spend more and go more often. she hasnt been going as much since covid but she still spends money she doesn't have on it. very on the fence about it right now I guess :/

Here's the update, typed as he was talking, apologies if I missed anything.
NO FURTHER SHUTDOWNS ANNOUNCED! Pause is EXTENDED through 1/15/2021.
​

• Situation: We are at a critical point and here is why.
• Encouraging news on vaccine: FDA granted emergency use. Western States panel approved.
• First vaccine shipment on Monday, frontline healthcare workers to get immediate vaccination.
• Did a test run for vaccine delivery process, will keep Nevadans posted.
• Dr. Fauci predicted a surge on top of a surge, that's where Nevada is headed.
• We are just now beginning to see the effects of the holidays. Small decline in cases and testing over the holiday, big surges now.
• Seeing big increases in hospitalizations, 1700 Nevadans since Friday.
• In Southern Nevada we have NOT peaked yet.
• Protecting healthcare infrastructure is the main priority. Setting up hospitals in parking garages just in case.
• No doubt our hospitals are seeing an increase in strain, as well as actual healthcare workers.
• COVID deaths on the rise. 2539 Nevadans dead.
• Statewide pause summary, talked about mitigation, capacity limits, etc.
• As of November 30th, 74% Nevadans wore masks when leaving home. If we were at 95% compliance we would save more lives by Spring.
• Noted that Nevadans are under stress, worried about health, jobs, school. Wants everyone to do what we can to reduce strain on hospitals.
• EXTENDING CURRENT NEVADA PAUSE THROUGH JANUARY 15TH, NO ANNOUNCED SHUTDOWNS.
• All current restrictions are still in place.
• Sisolak says that if his health officials see cases rise more, he will shut more things down.
• Sign an eviction moratorium in place tomorrow to protect Nevadans, through March 31st.
• Better to leave Nevadans in homes versus in shelters and homelessness.
• When people are evicted it becomes impossible to stay home, they will be forced outside and potentially spread COVID-19.
• Talked about how tenants are still obligated to pay rent. Talked about rental assistance programs. Supported with federal assistance dollars, funds are low though.
• Realizes this will be hard on landlords, asking landlords to continue to sacrifice and do more to help tenants. Promises to look into assistance for landlords.
• Vaccine on the horizon, please continue to be strong. Fight the virus, not each other.
• Says not a day goes by that he doesn't think about lives and our economic structure.
• Acknowledges that we have record cases, but realizes that families are suffering, with little financing assistance.
• Claims no winning options, picked whatever option hurts Nevadans the least.
• Federal government has yet to grasp the complexity of our situation. Federal government says that states are not doing enough. Sisolak admits mitigation policies, our complete shutdown, would be best. However without funding and paying Nevadans to stay home, is not realistic. Says shutdowns don't work without people getting paid.
• State is trying desperately to balance health and economy.
• Families are teetering on the brink. We have lost 250,000 jobs, NV had highest unemployment rate in the country.
• 142,000 Nevadans have exhausted their UI benefits, won't be able to file again until March 2021, says NV needs more federal help.
• State of Nevada had a savings account, a rainy day fund, which was their safety net. As of today, there is no more money. No more rainy day fund. CARES Act funding ends at the end of the year.
• According to our state economist, another shutdown will put us in a just as bad or worse state than the Great Depression.
• Says that if he could write a check to pay everyone, he would, but can't.
• Gaming industry. Under the same or tougher restrictions as everyone else. Gaming Control Board is the most regulated business in the state.
• When he thinks of the gaming industry, he loses sleep because under a state at home order, NV lost 250,000 jobs. Cooks, dealers, valet, entertainers, etc.
• Gaming matters in this state. If we shut down again, state loses $52 million in tax revenue a month. That same revenue supports Nevadans, health, benefits, the safety we need. That's why he has kept the casinos open.
• (Side note: so basically, casinos need to be open so that the state can fund UI and benefits for the State)
• This week it was reported that NV has seen a 50% increase in opioid and drug death. Does not believe its a coincidence.
• People won't be healthy if they lose their job, benefits, housing, etc.
• Relied on the science and health officials to make decisions.
• COVID-19 is the first and last thing he thinks about every day.
• Praises healthcare workers for their sacrifices.
• Says his blood boils when the federal government says that States do not do enough.
• Says that everyone is stepping up, task force has gotten millions of masks and PPE. Had to do it themselves versus rely on the federal government.
• Says federal government promised PPE, but help never came.
• Invites McConnell to look at the hospital wards, foreclosed homes, to look at all affected Nevadans when he said citizens did not need the extra help.
• Compromise is hard, but possible if both sides toss politics aside.
• We must figure things out on our own, if not, more shutdowns will be forced.
• Vaccine is on the way. Stay strong. Says he has made the best decision for our state all things considered.
• Called upon all Nevadans to come together, again, to do this.
• If we cannot control cases, he will impost further restrictions.
• We are all frontline people, tired, worn out, ready to give up. We have a choice to think of things as every man for themselves, or to support each other and have each others backs.
• Look after each other. Love our neighbors.
• We face all challenges together. Nevada will make it through this. The end result will be based on how much we care for each other.
• A Nevadan is testing positive every 40 seconds. 1 hour and 15 minutes a Nevadan dies.
• Please, protect yourselves and one another by wearing a mask, washing hands, and socially distance.

Started watching Babylon 5 for the first time and just finished season 1. Wrote a little bit about the episodes/characters that stood out to me, thought I'd drop it here. Apologies if I spell any names wrong I'm just going off what I hear (not using subtitles). Also I just saw that there are some movies too, not sure when I'm supposed to watch them? I haven't watched any of them yet.

Episode thoughts:

• Midnight on the Firing Line: The old-school CGI takes some getting used to, but it does the job. Looks like we're thrown right into the middle of the world as opposed to building up to it.
• Infection: I think this is the episode where I knew I'd like the series. The episodes before this were ok (and the main plot of this episode was ok too) but what really stood out to me was Garibaldi confronting Sinclair about him constantly risking his life. The initial episodes made out Sinclair to be a bit of an action hero-type leader, but they actually address it and, if I remember correctly, he does it a lot less throughout the season.
• The Parliament of Dreams Sinclair's old girlfriend comes back and... is actually normal (not some secret spy) and actually stays?? What is this true-to-life relationship building doing in my sci-fi? But in all seriousness, I love that Catherine comes back and actually becomes a recurring character instead of being a one-episode gimmick.
• Mind War I kinda knew from the start that the rogue Psycore guy would "ascend", but it does introduce us to the more secretive and insidious nature of the Psycore and questioning who is actually in charge of the Earth forces.
• And the Sky Full of Stars Shows us that the Minbari aren't as nice as they seem. Of the three main other races until now they'd seemed the most "peaceful", but this shows more of the war and that they did something strange to Sinclair.
• Deathwalker Really interesting idea of a "cure for everything" that actually requires taking life to create. I do wonder if it be brought back later, or if they find a way around that requirement. Seems like the Vorlon see themselves as somehow "better" than the other races? The fact that the other races don't seem to protest their actions makes me believe they probably are at least way more powerful.
• Believers Really liked this episode, could even be my favorite of the season. It's that classic moral dilemma where both sides have a point. I do think Sinclair was correct in the end though; they are an alien culture, it's not human's place to push our morals onto another species, as tragic as a results could be. I was curious as to whether the parents would be charged with murder for killing their child, but it was never brought up from what I remember.
• By Any Means Necessary Seems like working on Babylon 5 is hell. Definitely not a post-scarcity society like the Federation.
• Signs and Portents Introduces a mysterious character (not sure if his name is mentioned in this episode but we find out it's Morden in the last episode of the season). My guess is that he's part of Psycore, and is trying to probe the other races to see who could make a good alliance with Earth. Seems like he thinks the Centauri had the best answer to the "what do you want" question, so he's chosen to help them. Kosh seems to know what's up, maybe because of his researching into psychics thanks to his games with Ms Winters earlier in the season (forget the exact episode).
• Eyes Got distracted by the Psycore guy; is that Weyoun from DS9?
• A Voice in the Wilderness Cool two-parter. Where we find out the planet below is actually full of technological marvels. Seems a bit far-fetched that out of all the planets for Babylon 5 they just happened to choose one full of crazy technology. Of course it's all out-of-reach for the moment, maybe it will come into play later? It felt like the technology was so far advanced though that it may never be brought up again.
• Babylon Squared This episode really changed the tone of the show for me. Some time in the future, there's gonna be a bad war, and Sinclair is going to grab Babylon 4 and move it through time. It seems inevitable. Other characters have also had some bad prophecies about Babylon 5 and it's destruction (there was that Centauri prophet, and also Jinxo), so I'm thinking Babylon 5 may actually be destroyed for real. I'm really hoping this actually happens and isn't some "fate isn't written yet"-type thing that's avoided.
• Chrysalis Season-ending cliff-hanger. Morden is back and up to his usual meddling. Can't be a coincidence that the president was assassinated at the same time. Looks like Psycore may be making their move and taking over, and also currying more favour with the Centauri. Looks like the ships they're using are cloaked with a scaled up version of the technology the racist assassins had in that earlier episode (forget the exact episode that happened in).

Character Thoughts:

• Sinclair As mentioned above he initially came of as an action hero-type character, but now seems to me like a competent commander.
• Garibaldi Seems like a cool guy. The one episode where he goes on a bender felt a bit out-of-place and didn't really have any lasting consequences (goes straight back to drinking water). Maybe it will be brought up in a later season though.
• Ivanova Looks like she took over the "action hero" role a little bit from Sinclair, which is a good thing.
• Ms Winters Seems like a "good guy" but she still part of Psycore so it's hard not to think in the back of your mind that shes a spy and will betray everyone at a crucial moment.
• Londo He comes off as a buffoon and a comedy character in the first episode, but later episodes really flesh him out. Really like him now. His assistant especially seemed a bit too stupid, although they toned that down too as it went on.
• Jakar Initially you think the Narn are the "Klingons" of this series, but they only seem that way at first glance. Really interested to learn more about their history with the Centauri and what drove them to become so militaristic. His assistant is great with how direct she is.
• Dilen The Minbari start off feeling like the "nice ones", but then become more grey as you learn more about them. She's currently turning into a butterfly or something so will have to find out what happens in season 2!

Random Musings (not looking for answers, just wondering out loud)

• Security on the station seems pretty lax. They've got an entire seedy underbelly full of criminals on a very important military and diplomatic station. Seems like something you'd want to clean up. Sometimes when the ambassadors are walking around alone I think a nutter is gonna jump out from the shadows and just shoot them.
• Do most people on the station not know who Sinclair is? I swear in one episode he was asking around a casino about something and nobody was like "oh shit it's the commander", they just thought he was some random dude.
• What type of weapon is the PPG? Doesn't seem to have a visible projectile/beam, or is that because of budget/CGI?
• Still not sure the actual layout of the empires in space and where Babylon 5 actually sits in relation to them. I don't think they've shown a map or anything.
• Exactly how big is Babylon 5? It seems massive and some of the shots (like the park area) look HUGE, but is that maybe just a deliberate illusion so the people on the station don't get claustrophobia?
• More on the station itself, still not sure where exactly the CnC is in relation to the rest of the station.
• How do the warp gates work and how long does travel take? It also seems like some ships (the pirate ship from Signs and Portents) can just warp without using the warp gates.
• Same with communications, I remember something about "tachyon relay" or something, so I'm guessing they use those somehow for instant communications.

Edit: Saw some comments have been made already (I haven't read them though). I should mention I've turned off inbox replies for this post and won't be reading any comments until I finish the show (I'm also not subscribed to this subreddit yet either), so feel free to tell me how wrong I am in the comments or whatever, I'll come back and have a good laugh at myself too once I'm done with the show!

To start, this should be a single player game. If Bethesda/Obsidian/MS can make it so I can play with 1 or 2 friends, I want that but understand it's not that simple.
So why it should be picked:
First, NY has an amazing history when it comes to Pre-Revolution, Revolution, the Civil War, and beyond. Major events like the battle at Saratoga (which is considered the turning point of the Revolution), the 1980 Miracle on Ice, and Woodstock (along with a whole lot more) all took place in upstate NY. So the rich history of the area is ripe for pro American stylizing and propaganda that gives FO it's unique take on American Atom-punk.
That along with more modern history of things like the Native Americans (The Oneidas) actually taking back their land and forming their own sovereign nation (basically they have their own gov. Pay no state taxes, and self govern with police, fire, and allow gambling which NY does not). So their modern government would not only be some great lore, but I honestly believe could be a basis for the main quest line. Things like their unique tribal leadership, philosophy, and gambling (hello 10 luck) could bring a very grey area to fallout that was kind of missed in FO3 + 4. Plus their mythology would make for a great weird scene that fallout has at least 1 of every game.
Also, for those who don't know, upstate NY is very country with major cities pocketed about. (Utica, Albany, Syracuse, etc). So if you liked NV style of wandering the wastes, or 3s style of city wandering, we've got both. Also, we've got two mountains areas, one in the Adirondacks and the Catskills are the other.
That said, one of the most important parts of fallout are the locations. Where can we go? For that I have a list:
Major locations:
Lake Placid Winter Olympics training facility - the winter olympics world be held in 2078 and if they still exist by then and to play into the game, LP could be the location of those games. Again, the miracle on ice where American Amateurs bested the Communist Russian Pros, was held there. The "Better dead than Red" sentiment would be full force. Not to mention one of a few great locations for a possible vault (80, in this case to house winter olympians). Plus, the weapons could be cool too. Hockey sticks, hockey skate blades on gloves, a goalie mask for armor, you name it.
Cooperstown Baseball HOF - Now when you think Americana, Baseball is one of your first thoughts, don't lie. Cooperstown is baseball central and very pretty. Another great place for pro-american styles and fun gear like baseball base mines, softball helmets (because fuck you "A League of Their Own" style pro-baseball league in FO sounds awesome), and of course bats and baseball grenades. Also a baseball Vault (Vault 4, 5, 7, or 9). Not my idea, but in this vault, there's 32 teams of mens and 32 teams of womens baseball (or coed teams, idk), all of whom are pro players. Vault tec test is simple, winner gets food and drinks, loser gets steroid infused food and drink (but they don't know it has steroids obviously). The idea is, test how good at baseball people can be if given monster amounts of steroids for generations. I'll make a separate post about this in detail if desired.
Canastota Boxing HOF - Another unique area for America. Canastota is pretty boring and empty, but for those of you old enough to remember Rocky when it came out, it basically revived Boxing as a major sport and also had a moment where America bested the Red Menace (Rocky IV). Maybe a spot for a vault or to learn unique unarmed moves. Pugilism Illustrated anyone?
Albany - NYs capital and an easy big city area along the Hudson. A great location for corporate greed, governmental corruption, and side quests. Can't say it'll be the focal point of the game since its very near the eastern border of it, but a good location for exploring and lore.
Buffalo/Niagara Falls - Ya ever gone over the falls in a barrel? Do ya want to? I think using Niagara Falls (which has an American and Canadian side, Canadas is the U-shaped famous one) as Fallouts first "Non-American" location would be fun. First, the falls are beautiful and are a major source of hydroelectric power. Second, in FO, America annexed canada, so it's technically still America! Third, right across the "border" are casinos! More gambling! Third and a half, it's another big city and buffalo is where the buffalo wing was invented (God bless buffalo wings). Besides the cool lore opportunity about the annexation and the city location, the falls could be a major location for the story if the main conflict was about powering the area, similar to NV.
Syracuse - NYs (literal) center city. The Salt City as it was formally known is a big city with some great old and new style. Again, not much about the city to say, but a great opportunity for corporate BS. The main attraction would be the Syracuse Dome (formerly the Carrier Dome). Due to its location and style, it's perfect as a central trading hub for the major cities and people. Think of Great Green Jewel style, people living, bars, shops, etc. BUT the really interesting part is what's right next to the Dome. SUNY ESF (Environmental Science and Forestry). This college is special because (A. I went there) it has very unique programs and with some future tech thrown in, could be a great location for a Fallout 3 Harold or NV vault 22-esq quest. The college already does experiments with major chemicals, evolution (FEV anyone?) and breeding plants for unique purposes. Again, I have a really cool idea for this area, but that can be a different post. Fun fact, ESF is actually working to bring back the North America Chestnut that went (nearly) extinct! Also, some asshole releases the fruit flies the genetics lab work with every year and it sucks.
NYC (Empire, 9/11 memorial, Statue of Liberty) - Yeah yeah, you can't have NY without the City, but frankly there's so much here to explore and deal with, I'd leave it to the pros to really do it justice.
Turning Stone Casino - Gambling, a hotel/restaurants like in NV, and a good spot for the main quest line.
Fort Stanwix - A real revolutionary war fort. HQ or major area for raiders. Safe, well protected and with plenty of history.
Fort Drum and Griffis Air Force Base: Two major bases that could be packed with guns, nukes, and power armor. Heavily guarded by turrets, robots, and security gates.
Main Quest:
Without too much detail, I figure your character will be hired to figure out the future of NY.
You'll be brought to the Turning Stone which is currently the HQ of the Oneida tribe. Your job would be to either work with the other tribes in the former Iroquois Confederation (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora [added later]). (Quick note: in my AU, some time after the bombs fell, the IC came to power because of their knowledge of living off the land and attempted to rebuild society. After some time rebuilding and establishing a post-war society, the tribes do the thing all humans do and bicker. Around 2200 the IC broke apart but the tribes retained power in their areas. They fight, trade, yadda yadda but no one is in control of everything.
Throughout your quest, it turns out that what is holding everyone back is a lack of power for things like lights and running water. Your job will be to determine where to get that power (Nuclear power plant in Oswego or the falls in Niagara?) And where to give it (one tribe? A few? Or all?). But that's not all, the tribes can't decide who should be in charge. One tribe wants to remain independent, don't help the outsiders and rebuild society in their image within NY, another wants to help others but would need to sacrifice their own people's safety and seclusion. Maybe another wants to be imperialist and expand their borders throughout America through way of force and fear while another agrees with taking land but wants it done through offers of protection for taxes. And each tribe has its own opinion on bringing the IC back together, staying separate, or taking over the tribes for themselves.
It's up to you character to decide who to help. Do you work hard to try and bring all tribes together under one banner or choose a side and execute their will as a paid mercenary/ambassador?
Other choices would be chaos by siding with raiders, or maybe a BOS path to take out all the tribes, idk, haven't thought it all out. Again, not a writer.
Mechanics:
So personally, I like the idea that if you choose to go with a single faction, there would a battle/war mechanic where you and an army (or alone if you really wanna try) take over and lay claim to areas similar to Nuka World where you fly the gangs flag. Nothing complicated, normal fallout fights, don't die and kill the leadehis troops to win.
Karma is back. You will garner good or bad rep with each tribe depending on what you do. I'd like an armor system like in NV but I can live without it.
There is an ending. Once you beat the game you can continue doing side quests for armoexperience/ammo but only for the tribes left in power. Occasional rebellions will rise up as random events that need to be put down.
Settlements are limited. Like skyrim, but a plot and build. No need to build one everywhere and you don't even need to do it if you don't want to.
Radio host? Gimme a Mr. New Vegas type guy. I don't want an eccentric 3-dog, I want a smoothed voiced person wishing me lady like luck.
Also, smarter AI.
Otherwise, typical FO mechanics. Weapons degrade, can upgrade weapons and armor, etc.
Main problems with NY:
No real borders to the south. Invisible walls would like be necessary which is stupid. Same to the East, but the Hudson could theoretically be used as a border if you put crazy strong mirelurks or something to kill the player if they tried to cross (or more invisible walls)
Don't want to disrespect the tribes. This is an issue with using each tribe as a possible faction. You're bound to piss off or disrespect one. So it'll be a task to make sure it's as limited as possible.
What to do with the city? It's a huge area that can be used for so much, but as a part of NY it's actually pretty seperated. It's a commercial hub now, but there's nothing there that would really be a reason to go down there. So do you make it one or do we just make it a glowing sea type area that's completely decimated from the bombs? That's my personal choice honestly, but it's a tough one to please as many as possible.
Conclusion: NY is rad.
I'll be taking questions as long as they do not involve Canadian trivia. Thank you.

Here’s a link to the first post with 10 other overlooked indie games.
Introduction
We're all familiar with the Hotline Miami's, Hollow Knight's, and Celeste's of the world. These are some of the indie games that hit the big time. Of course, for every one of these games, there's 100 other indie games that have been glossed over, relegated to a spot in a digital store few people will ever find themselves in. I wanted to bring attention to some of these lesser known indie games. I'm going to order them according to Metacritic Critic Ratings. Some of the games at the bottom have pretty low critic ratings. I personally disagree with the low scores of these games, but it's only fair that you hear from more than just me.
Price will include a link to the U.S. store page of the game. Price is in U.S. dollars.
1. Inertial Drift

• Price: $19.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Racing
  
• Metacritic: 84% from 5 Critic Reviews, 80% from 2 User Ratings
  
• Description: Inertial Drift's distinguishing characteristic is its employment of the right analog stick for drifting. This takes a little getting used to, but it feels great once you get the hang of it, creating some exhilarating moments when perfecting corner turns. The game has 10 unique tracks + 10 reversed tracks, 16 vehicles, and four separate story arcs. Each story arc is only a couple of hours long and features a different protagonist with a different vehicle. Since you’ll be racing on the same track a few times, there are a few gameplay variations that differ from just reaching the finish line at the end, such as racking up a certain number of points that are acquired through longer drift times and other means. There's quite a bit of dialogue between races, and in the races themselves characters will frequently dish out positive commentary on your performance in the form of text in the top left hand corner of the screen. The game's aesthetics are a fusion of anime and synthwave. I've heard many fans liken the game to the manga Initial D, though I'm unfamiliar with that series myself.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours (for 1/4 Story Arcs)
  
• Extra Content: There are a number of different modes including a Story Mode, Challenge Mode, Grand Prix Mode, Arcade Mode, two player Split-Screen, and Online, as well as a Tutorial. Completion of challenges in Challenge Mode allows you to unlock new vehicles for the other non-Story Modes. Grand Prix Mode allows you to race using different characters/vehicles through a connected set of challenges, while Arcade Mode is for one-off races. I wouldn't recommend this game for online play as the user-base is pretty small (hence it being overlooked) and you're unlikely to find a match. Getting all the achievements is fairly difficult.
  

2. Pumpkin Jack

• Price: $29.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 3D Action Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 8 Critic Reviews, 60% from 10 User Ratings
  
• Description: This is a 3D platformer that reportedly takes inspiration from both MediEvil and Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. There’s about equal amounts of platforming and combat in this game. While the combat is relatively simple, you’re given a variety of weapons that all feel unique. The levels have a good amount of variety within them – you’ll jump between ships on a ferry ride, ride an undead horse through the sky, play a few mini games as a headless Jack, and fight a boss at the end of each of the six levels. Both the combat and platforming are relatively easy – platforms are typically large and Jack has an edge grab that helps tremendously, and smashing the many destructible objects around the levels increases your health. This game takes the linear adventure approach, with a number of collectibles sprinkled throughout the levels: crow skulls, presents, and gramophones. Some areas are more open and allow you to choose the order in which you do certain tasks. The game has a decent amount of dialogue in it, which does an effective job of giving some character to Jack, his two animal companions, and the rest of the cast. The visuals and soundtrack are particularly great, especially if you’re into Halloween themed media.
  
• Completion Time: ~4 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There’s collectibles to back for – I got about 2/3 of the collectibles on my first playthrough – skins to unlock – which are purchased with the collectibles you find in the levels – and you get to start a second playthrough with all the weapons already unlocked at the beginning.
  

3. Pato Box

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Punch-Out-like 3D Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 1 Critic Review, 80% from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: Pato Box follows an anthropomorphic duck boxer on an adventure through a stylistic noir comic book world. “Pato” is a Spanish word that translates to “Duck” in English (the game was developed by a Mexican studio). The boss fights are heavily inspired by Punch-Out’s gameplay, but there are levels outside of these fights to help differentiate it. Most of the levels can be selected in any order you choose and typically serve as a leadup to the boss fight. Bosses are usually introduced by a cutscene followed by some dialogue taunting Pato Box. The levels play entirely differently from the fights, but the themes of the level match those of the bosses. The levels will employ various elements of evasion, stealth, exploration, and a few time-based mini-games. The casino level, for example, will have you walk around the casino looking for chips and punching the slot machines to earn enough to pay entrance to the fight, while the food factory has you evading stompers, sawblades, and butcher knives as you work your way through the level. There are variety of things to find throughout the levels: tokens for decorations in Pato Box’s room, backstory on the boss of the level and the world, and tips on how to win the upcoming fight. The fights themselves lock Pato Box in the middle of the screen, allowing you to block, juke left or right, and perform a low or high jab to the left or right. The game foregoes a HUD in favor of a visual representation of your health via scars on your body, which I thought was a nice touch. While the levels and bosses play pretty differently from each other, they’re weaved together by a dark and intriguing story that follows Pato Box’s quest for retribution against an evil corporation.
  
• Completion Time: ~7 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There’s an Arcade Mode that lets you replay boss fights and some collectibles to find in the main campaign. The achievements are very difficult, and many ask you to beat a boss without taking a single hit.
  

4. Ultra Hat Dimension

• Price: $4.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Level-based Puzzle Game
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 1 Critic Review, 60% from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: Ultra Hat Dimension follows Bea through a series of rooms in a palace on a quest to undo the magical spell that has made the mythical Spluff creatures want to attack one another. There is a little bit of backstory via one sentence thoughts from Bea in between levels, but nothing major here. The gameplay revolves equipping four different types of hats and using them to evade or push Spluffs around to retrieve the key and reach the door. Each Spluff dons one of four different hats which effects their behavior towards other Spluffs and you. You will be punched one tile back by every Spluff unless you’re wearing the same hat as the Spluff. Spluffs interact with one another differently depending on what hat they’re wearing in a rock, paper, scissors kind of way – they may punch a Spluff back one space, get into a scuffle that allows you to get close to them without wearing a hat, or they may temporarily disable them in a way that allows you to access the space the Spluff consumes within eight moves. There are undo and reset buttons included that allow you to quickly rewind mistakes. There are some clever puzzles accompanied by catchy tunes and a charming pixel art aesthetic. The difficulty is about average.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Since this is published by Ratalaika Games, getting all the achievements can be obtained after only clearing 2/3 of the levels. There are a few custom maps on the PC version of the game but no additional content on consoles.
  

5. Penarium

• Price: $9.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 72% from 7 Critic Reviews, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: This is a quirky carnival-themed 2D platformer. The premise of the game is of a young boy overcoming obstacles and traps for the amusement of a sadistic circus crowd. The whole game operates on a single screen and utilizes only a double jump and movement. Jump to the edge of one side and you pop out on the other. You're tasked with dodging hazards and overcoming obstacles while smashing barrels around the stage or executing some other task, like staying in a spotlight that moves around and shines in different spots. There are three cut-scenes in the game that total less than two minutes and about 10 minutes of dialogue. Even though the story is very brief, I still felt the ending was a satisfying conclusion and offered more than I expected.
  
• Completion Time: ~2.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There is an arcade mode where you can see how many barrels you can smash in a set amount of time. The achievements are pretty difficult but offer some fun challenges. There is also a competitive/versus local multiplayer mode for two players, but it's nothing special and probably won't entertain long.
  

6. SINNER: Sacrifice for Redemption

• Price: $18.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Soulslike Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 66% from 11 Critic reviews, 53% from 11 User Ratings
  
• Description: SINNER: Sacrifice for Redemption is a Soulslike boss rush - there are no levels and only small area before each boss to practice your moves. There are eight bosses, the first seven allowing you to fight in any order, each representing the seven deadly sins. You are equipped with everything the game has to offer from the beginning (except for the New Game+ weapon they give you), and instead of becoming more powerful, you gradually lose things with each boss you defeat, hence the “sacrifice” in the title. It’s like a reverse RPG. Each boss has a different sacrifice associated to it – one may deplete your throwing items’ usage, while another will deplete your health and stamina. Picking the best order to fight them in adds a little strategic thinking to the game, as you may be more dependent on your large health and stamina bar more than your throwing items’ usage, for example. The game is fairly difficult, so your victories over each boss feel very gratifying when they do come.
  
• Completion Time: ~5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There is New Game+ that offers you an additional weapon. The achievements task you with a few things you have to pull off in battles, and getting all the achievements is pretty easy to obtain.
  

7. Tamashii

• Price: $11.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Slightly Graphic (Link)
  
• Genre: Puzzle PlatformeHorror
  
• Metacritic: 65% from 2 Critic Reviews, 70% from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: Reportedly inspired by obscure Japanese games from the late 1980s and 1990s, Tamashii blends puzzle platforming together with an oppressive atmosphere. The introduction starts with the character being willed into existence by a godlike character that tasks him with destroying the macabre forces that have taken control of and corrupted his chambers. Your character is able to spawn three inanimate clones of himself which is the primary source for most of the platforming and some of the boss fights – you’ll use them to trigger switches and open up new paths. There’s about an even mix of puzzle solving and platforming, and there’s a whole eight bosses in this short adventure (though one is a secret) that are probably the most visually interesting moments in the game. The creatures and backgrounds are effective in selling the dark presentation of the game. The difficulty is about average – maybe slightly easier than most indie puzzle platformers. There is a sequel currently in the works.
  
• Completion Time: ~2.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are a few obscure secrets to discover. You can also play through the chambers again with a score meter, and there are certain achievements associated with getting a good score. Getting all the achievements isn’t too difficult, but you’ll probably need a guide for some of the secrets.
  

8. Daggerhood

• Price: $4.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 63% from 2 Critic Reviews, 70% from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: Daggerhood's main hook is the use of its sword teleportation mechanic. You throw your sword with a button, and you press the same button again to teleport to where the sword is. While this is a mechanic that has been seen in some Metroidvanias, I haven't seen a tight, linear 2D platformer make use of this mechanic before. Each level has a number of collectibles and some small side sections as well, but for the most part the path to the finish is clear - it's just the execution that's the tricky part. Add in teleportation portals to make things even trickier.
  
• Completion Time: ~2.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: As this is a Ratalaika Games published game, getting all the achievements only takes about 1-1.5 hours to achieve. You can get it well before you even finish the game, which is a shame because the game had all the makings for a fun 100% achievement goal. There are tons of collectibles in each level, and each level records your time. So there is a lot here to extend to the playtime.
  

9. The Bunker

• Price: $19.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: FMV Point & Click Adventure/Horror
  
• Metacritic: 59% from 8 Critic Reviews, 55% from 11 User Ratings
  
• Description: The Bunker is an FMV point & click adventure, meaning it features real actors and environments just like a live action movie. Many of the actors involved have been in high profile movies/TV shows as well, including The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, Star Wars, and Penny Dreadful. The game takes place in a fallout shelter and follows the last survivor as he tries to find a way outside following the death of his mother, after living 30+ years in the bunker. The gameplay has you solving puzzles and finding ways to proceed to the next area. The story is the focal point of the game though, and it frequently switches between the past and the present to tell its story. There’s a good juxtaposition between the lively past and the lonely present that makes you question how the protagonist ended up as the last survivor. There’s only one narrative choice to make in the game, and it comes at the very end. The game also works in handheld mode with touchscreen functionality if you'd prefer to play it that way.
  
• Completion Time: ~2. Hour Completion Time*
  
• Extra Content: You can replay the game and try to find all the collectibles. Most of them give more background on the story. You can trigger the ending you did not choose the first time around by simply reloading the last checkpoint, so there is no need to play through the whole game again to unlock it. Getting all the achievements is fairly easy.
  

10. Cybarian: The Time-Traveling Warrior

• Price: $4.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Trailer
  
• Genre: 2D Action Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 48% from 2 Critic Reviews, 75% from 2 User Ratings
  
• Description: Cybarian has an interesting yet simple combat system that distinguishes itself from most action platformers. Instead of mashing the attack button, you have to press it once, wait two seconds for the animation to complete, press it again, wait two seconds for the animation to complete, and then press it again to complete a full combo. It sounds like something that's easy to get down quickly, but I found myself still occasionally going too quickly in the intensity of a boss fight. The game punishes you by not fulfilling the attack if you button mash. After each boss fight, you unlock a new move that will be required to fell some foes in the next stage. Conversely, you can play Hard Mode which unlocks all moves right from the get-go, but you'll have to beat all four stages without dying. "Hardcore Mode" would've been a more apt description of this difficulty setting, I feel.
  
• Completion Time: ~1.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Just like with Ultra Hat Dimension and Daggerhood, this is a Ratalaika Games published game, so getting all the achievements can be achieved in under an hour. It would've been nice if they pushed you to beat Hard Mode, but you'll just have to settle for internal gratification instead.
  

Have you played any of these games? What are some other overlooked single player indie games?
If you’re looking for more indie games to play, see my post here:

• 200 Local Multiplayer Games from 40 Different Genres on Xbox One

Here's the update, typed as he was talking, apologies if I missed anything.
NO FURTHER SHUTDOWNS ANNOUNCED! Pause is EXTENDED through 1/15/2021.
​

• Situation: We are at a critical point and here is why.
• Encouraging news on vaccine: FDA granted emergency use. Western States panel approved.
• First vaccine shipment on Monday, frontline healthcare workers to get immediate vaccination.
• Did a test run for vaccine delivery process, will keep Nevadans posted.
• Dr. Fauci predicted a surge on top of a surge, that's where Nevada is headed.
• We are just now beginning to see the effects of the holidays. Small decline in cases and testing over the holiday, big surges now.
• Seeing big increases in hospitalizations, 1700 Nevadans since Friday.
• In Southern Nevada we have NOT peaked yet.
• Protecting healthcare infrastructure is the main priority. Setting up hospitals in parking garages just in case.
• No doubt our hospitals are seeing an increase in strain, as well as actual healthcare workers.
• COVID deaths on the rise. 2539 Nevadans dead.
• Statewide pause summary, talked about mitigation, capacity limits, etc.
• As of November 30th, 74% Nevadans wore masks when leaving home. If we were at 95% compliance we would save more lives by Spring.
• Noted that Nevadans are under stress, worried about health, jobs, school. Wants everyone to do what we can to reduce strain on hospitals.
• EXTENDING CURRENT NEVADA PAUSE THROUGH JANUARY 15TH, NO ANNOUNCED SHUTDOWNS.
• All current restrictions are still in place.
• Sisolak says that if his health officials see cases rise more, he will shut more things down.
• Sign an eviction moratorium in place tomorrow to protect Nevadans, through March 31st.
• Better to leave Nevadans in homes versus in shelters and homelessness.
• When people are evicted it becomes impossible to stay home, they will be forced outside and potentially spread COVID-19.
• Talked about how tenants are still obligated to pay rent. Talked about rental assistance programs. Supported with federal assistance dollars, funds are low though.
• Realizes this will be hard on landlords, asking landlords to continue to sacrifice and do more to help tenants. Promises to look into assistance for landlords.
• Vaccine on the horizon, please continue to be strong. Fight the virus, not each other.
• Says not a day goes by that he doesn't think about lives and our economic structure.
• Acknowledges that we have record cases, but realizes that families are suffering, with little financing assistance.
• Claims no winning options, picked whatever option hurts Nevadans the least.
• Federal government has yet to grasp the complexity of our situation. Federal government says that states are not doing enough. Sisolak admits mitigation policies, our complete shutdown, would be best. However without funding and paying Nevadans to stay home, is not realistic. Says shutdowns don't work without people getting paid.
• State is trying desperately to balance health and economy.
• Families are teetering on the brink. We have lost 250,000 jobs, NV had highest unemployment rate in the country.
• 142,000 Nevadans have exhausted their UI benefits, won't be able to file again until March 2021, says NV needs more federal help.
• State of Nevada had a savings account, a rainy day fund, which was their safety net. As of today, there is no more money. No more rainy day fund. CARES Act funding ends at the end of the year.
• According to our state economist, another shutdown will put us in a just as bad or worse state than the Great Depression.
• Says that if he could write a check to pay everyone, he would, but can't.
• Gaming industry. Under the same or tougher restrictions as everyone else. Gaming Control Board is the most regulated business in the state.
• When he thinks of the gaming industry, he loses sleep because under a state at home order, NV lost 250,000 jobs. Cooks, dealers, valet, entertainers, etc.
• Gaming matters in this state. If we shut down again, state loses $52 million in tax revenue a month. That same revenue supports Nevadans, health, benefits, the safety we need. That's why he has kept the casinos open.
• (Side note: so basically, casinos need to be open so that the state can fund UI and benefits for the State)
• This week it was reported that NV has seen a 50% increase in opioid and drug death. Does not believe its a coincidence.
• People won't be healthy if they lose their job, benefits, housing, etc.
• Relied on the science and health officials to make decisions.
• COVID-19 is the first and last thing he thinks about every day.
• Praises healthcare workers for their sacrifices.
• Says his blood boils when the federal government says that States do not do enough.
• Says that everyone is stepping up, task force has gotten millions of masks and PPE. Had to do it themselves versus rely on the federal government.
• Says federal government promised PPE, but help never came.
• Invites McConnell to look at the hospital wards, foreclosed homes, to look at all affected Nevadans when he said citizens did not need the extra help.
• Compromise is hard, but possible if both sides toss politics aside.
• We must figure things out on our own, if not, more shutdowns will be forced.
• Vaccine is on the way. Stay strong. Says he has made the best decision for our state all things considered.
• Called upon all Nevadans to come together, again, to do this.
• If we cannot control cases, he will impost further restrictions.
• We are all frontline people, tired, worn out, ready to give up. We have a choice to think of things as every man for themselves, or to support each other and have each others backs.
• Look after each other. Love our neighbors.
• We face all challenges together. Nevada will make it through this. The end result will be based on how much we care for each other.
• A Nevadan is testing positive every 40 seconds. 1 hour and 15 minutes a Nevadan dies.
• Please, protect yourselves and one another by wearing a mask, washing hands, and socially distance.

We're all familiar with the Hotline Miami's, Hollow Knight's, and Celeste's of the world. These are some of the indie games that hit the big time. Of course, for every one of these games, there's 100 other indie games that have been glossed over, relegated to a spot in a digital store few people will ever find themselves in. I wanted to bring attention to some of these lesser known indie games.
I'm going to order them according to Metacritic Critic Ratings. Some of the games at the bottom have pretty low critic ratings. I personally disagree with the low scores of these games, but it's only fair that you hear from more than just me. Keep in mind that games with only one or two User Ratings on Metacritic will not show the score. A game needs at least three User Ratings on Metacritic before the score will be shown. This is not the case for Critic Reviews.
Price will contain the U.S. PlayStation Store link to the game.
1. Hayfever

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Precision Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 90% from 1 Critic Review, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: Hayfever is a precision platformer that revolves around a mailman propelling himself using a number of different allergens that act as power-ups. A lot of the platforming is aerial and typically has you catching allergens mid-air to perform maneuvers in quick succession. It's not an easy game by any means, but it has oddly relaxing music to accompany the rather intense platforming. There are also letters to collect in each level to steepen the challenge and some secrets to discover too. It takes an hour or so to get used to the aerial platforming, and this is one of the few 2D platformers played better with the analog stick rather than the D-Pad. But letters that seemed unattainable to me at the beginning of the game became much simpler by the end, as I had mastered the controls and physics of the game. I don't expect everyone to love this game, but I have to agree with the one other guy who played it that gave it a 9/10. After putting 25+ hours into it, I am still eager to replay it soon.
  
• Completion Time: ~8 Hours
  
• Extra Content: It'll take another 8 hours or so to collect all the letters and probably about 6 hours or so to beat the Hard World, which features an additional 28 remixed levels. There are also secrets to uncover, but they don't net any in game progress and only work towards your trophy completion. Finding these secrets will probably vary more in time because they are hidden, but expect them to take a few hours to find. Just to clarify, letters are an expanded test of your platforming skills and are all in clear view of the screen, while secrets are a test of your observation skills and take a little more digging to find. The platinum trophy is a fair and rewarding challenge that took me about 25-30 hours to get.
  

2. Valfaris

• Price: $24.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Run & Gun
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 9 Critic Reviews, 63% from 25 User Ratings
  
• Description: Valfaris is one of the best run & gun games I've ever played. You play as Prince Therion who returns to his home planet of Valfaris on a quest to kill his father. It's themed around a fictional planet and has a gross alien vibe coupled with heavy metal music. The music doesn't override the other audio in the game, and it does a nice job of upping the ante when you're fighting a boss – of which there are many. You're equipped with a primary gun, a more powerful mana-based gun, a sword, and a shield that can block with mana or parry. There are a number of weapons to acquire throughout the game, and the guns in particular do a great job of feeling different. You’re able to upgrade your weapons with Blood Metals. Some Blood Metals are found in plain sight, others are rewarded for defeating a tough enemy, and some are given for going off the beaten path. These upgrades typically just up the firepower but will sometimes introduce a secondary move to your weapon. There are checkpoints every two minutes or so, and most bosses will have a checkpoint just before them (only the weaker bosses come after a gauntlet of enemies). The game is a little hard at points, but overall it strikes a nice balance of feeling accomplished for overcoming the challenges without getting overly frustrating.
  
• Completion Time: ~8 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are a few secrets to find throughout the game that are off the beaten path, though I was able to find 2/3 of them on my first playthrough. I found all but one weapon as well. The replayability comes from New Game+, which allows you to take all your upgraded weapons into a harder version of the game. Since the weapons all function a bit differently, this can be lots of fun. Getting the platinum trophy is somewhat difficult.
  

3. Four Sided Fantasy

• Price: $9.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Trailer
  
• Genre: 2D Puzzle Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 3 Critic Reviews, N/A from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: The premise of the game is a fusion of side scrollers and oldschool fixed screens that teleport you to the opposite side of the screen when you pass through one side - think Pac-Man, arcade Mario Bros., or Balloon Fight. You will find obstacles in your path that are impenetrable in a typical side scroller, but can be overcome by holding a button to turn the screen into a fixed screen that allows you to pass through one side and out through the other end. This is a totally unique take on a puzzle platformer I haven't seen before, and all five worlds bring something new to the table. For example, World 2 will flip you upside down when you pass through a screen, allowing new types of challenges as a result. There's more emphasis on the puzzle elements than the platforming.
  
• Completion Time: ~2 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There is a New Game+, but from what I could tell from the beginning it wasn't a whole lot different. Still, there's a trophy for completing New Game+ and some other fun trophies. Unfortunately, like many early generation indie games, this one has no platinum trophy.
  

4. Bleep Bloop

• Price: $3.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Puzzle Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 1 Critic Review, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: This game revolves around using two square characters who fling themselves from one end of the room to the other to reach an exit. You must position yourself in such a way that you use each character's body to get around the level. Each world introduces a new mechanic to keep things fresh. The whole game is played only using the two analog sticks (the d-pad and face buttons work, but the two analog sticks are best, in my opinion). It can also be played in local co-op, however with how often you have to fling yourself around, coordinating the correct movements to the other player would be exhausting, and it is easier to experiment yourself.
  
• Completion Time: ~3.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There's really no extra content, but $4 for what's almost a 4 hour game isn't bad. There is an easy platinum trophy however.
  

5. Horizon Shift ‘81

• Price: $8.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 1980s Arcade-like Fixed Screen Shoot ‘em Up
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 1 Critic Review, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: This is actually a sequel to the Steam exclusive Horizon Shift, which sports a different aesthetic and isn’t quite as good from what I’ve read. Horizon Shift ’81 mimics the look of a fixed screen shoot ‘em up from the early 1980s but comes with a few twists of its own. Your ship is positioned in the middle of the screen on a horizontal line rather than the bottom, and you have to flip between sides to deal with enemies coming from both the top and the bottom. The line can be broken in different places – leaving a gap where you can fall to your death – by asteroids and certain projectiles. This is where the expanded moveset comes into play: you can jump between gaps and also over enemies who attach themselves to the line. Enemies on the line can also be taken out with a horizontal shield bash that regenerates after a few seconds. There is a boss after every five stages, some of which will actually bring the line down to the bottom of the screen, while others retain it in the middle. Horizon Shift ’81 has a number of customizable settings that change everything from the aesthetics, to the difficulty, to the checkpoint/lives system, to the speed of the game, and more. The two main modes are a choice between three lives with a checkpoint before and after every boss, or a checkpoint at the beginning of every level but only one life.
  
• Completion Time: ~3.5 Hours (Normal Mode on Arcade Style)
  
• Extra Content: There are a number of ways to customize your future playthroughs, and there’s an unlockable boss rush mode after finishing the game. The few trophies are relatively easy to obtain. There is no platinum trophy for this game.
  

6. Daggerhood

• Price: $4.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 77% from 2 Critic Reviews, N/A from 2 User Ratings
  
• Description: Daggerhood's main hook is the use of its sword teleportation mechanic. You throw your sword with a button, and you press the same button again to teleport to where the sword is. While this is a mechanic that has been seen in some Metroidvanias, I haven't seen a tight, linear 2D platformer make use of this mechanic before. Each level has a number of collectibles and some small side sections as well, but for the most part the path to the finish is clear - it's just the execution that's the tricky part. Add in teleportation portals to make things even trickier.
  
• Completion Time: ~2.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: As this is a Ratalaika Games published game, the platinum trophy only takes about 1-1.5 hours to achieve. You can get it well before you even finish the game, which is a shame because the game had all the makings for a fun platinum trophy. There are tons of collectibles in each level, and each level records your time. So there is a lot here to extend to the playtime.
  

7. Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight

• Price: $9.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Metroidvania
  
• Metacritic: 76% from 22 Critic Reviews, 73% from 39 User Ratings
  
• Description: Usually with Metroidvanias, I expect a long, difficult game that's difficult to navigate. Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight is a counter to those ideas while still maintaining the exploratory nature of the sub-genre. The plot is pretty simple and doesn't feature a ton of story, but there are a few NPCs you talk to throughout your quest. The combat is also fairly simple, but the boss fights you engage in are all great. Without much weapon customization, it's stripped to the basics of dodging enemy attacks while trying to get a hit in. It makes for a game that's easy to get into and instantly start enjoying. All of the areas are visually appealing, some more than others, and each of them lasts shorter than you'd expect. The game is only around 3-5 hours, but it feels like you've played so much more in that time. Some games only really start to take off by the time this game finishes.
  
• Completion Time: ~4 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Getting 100% map completion should only take an hour or two of cleanup. I did miss an optional boss on my first playthrough. There are also items to discover, and the trophies give fun challenges to extend the life of the game. Unfortunately there is no platinum trophy for this game. One cool thing I liked was that beating a boss without getting hit at all gives you a useful item. It also features New Game+, allowing you to carry over most of your items, making the game more difficult, and changing up enemy placement.
  

8. Ultra Hat Dimension

• Price: $4.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Level-based Puzzle Game
  
• Metacritic: 76% from 2 Critic Reviews, 80% from 2 User Ratings
  
• Description: Ultra Hat Dimension follows Bea through a series of rooms in a palace on a quest to undo the magical spell that has made the mythical Spluff creatures want to attack one another. There is a little bit of backstory via one sentence thoughts from Bea in between levels, but nothing major here. The gameplay revolves equipping four different types of hats and using them to evade or push Spluffs around to retrieve the key and reach the door. Each Spluff dons one of four different hats which effects their behavior towards other Spluffs and you. You will be punched one tile back by every Spluff unless you’re wearing the same hat as the Spluff. Spluffs interact with one another differently depending on what hat they’re wearing in a rock, paper, scissors kind of way – they may punch a Spluff back one space, get into a scuffle that allows you to get close to them without wearing a hat, or they may temporarily disable them in a way that allows you to access the space the Spluff consumes within eight moves. There are undo and reset buttons included that allow you to quickly rewind mistakes. There are some clever puzzles accompanied by catchy tunes and a charming pixel art aesthetic. The difficulty is about average.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Since this is published by Ratalaika Games, getting the platinum trophy can be obtained after only clearing 2/3 of the levels. There are a few custom maps on the PC version of the game but no additional content on consoles.
  

9. Remothered: Tormented Fathers

• Price: $29.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: (Slightly Graphic) Link
  
• Genre: Survival Horror
  
• Metacritic: 75% from 13 Critic Reviews, 77% from 53 Ratings
  
• Description: Remothered: Tormented Fathers feels very old school in its design philosophy - no weapons outside a few self defense items and distraction items. You go back and forth in the mansion and have to learn the layout and where things are to proceed. You have to manually select the key item from your inventory to use on triggers (but a key icon is still shown to guide you a little). The sounds in this game do a great job of evoking tension, and I appreciate that the stalkers don’t seem to teleport, so if you can get away from them, you’ve earned your freedom for awhile. This is the first game in a loosely connected trilogy, with the second one due later this year.
  
• Completion Time: ~6 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are some collectibles you can go back for, but not a whole beyond that. Unfortunately there is no platinum trophy for this game, and you'll probably get most of the trophies - if not all, except the collectibles one - on your first playthrough.
  

10. Reverie

• Price: $12.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Zelda-like Top Down Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 75% from 1 Critic Review, 55% from 11 User Rating
  
• Description: Reverie is a mix between Zelda’s gameplay, Earthbound’s aesthetic and humor, and a New Zealand folktale – the legend of Maui and the Giant Fish. Instead of the more traditional sword and shield style fantasy, Reverie instead opts for items and tools a modern boy is more likely to find in his possession, like a cricket bat, a yoyo, and a nerf gun. Similarly, the first dungeon is grandpa’s basement, where you’ll square off against a giant hedgehog and a tumble dryer. That said, the game does get more fantastical with the last two locations, particularly the last one. It’s a relatively easy game overall, though the fourth and especially fifth dungeon offer up a moderate challenge. The indie scene has produced a lot of Zelda-like games in recent years, but this is the only one I know of that isn’t your standard medieval fantasy.
  
• Completion Time: ~5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are feathers to collect, mini games to play, and a combat focused bonus dungeon to beat. That said, a lot of this stuff is easy to stumble upon in the main quest, so you’re probably looking at about two or three hours’ worth of content after beating the game to complete everything and get the platinum trophy.
  

11. Inertial Drift

• Price: $19.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Racing
  
• Metacritic: 74% from 6 Critic Reviews, 50% from 1 User Ratings
  
• Description: Inertial Drift's distinguishing characteristic is its employment of the right analog stick for drifting. This takes a little getting used to, but it feels great once you get the hang of it, creating some exhilarating moments when perfecting corner turns. The game has 10 unique tracks + 10 reversed tracks, 16 vehicles, and four separate story arcs. Each story arc is only a couple of hours long and features a different protagonist with a different vehicle. Since you’ll be racing on the same track a few times, there are a few gameplay variations that differ from just reaching the finish line at the end, such as racking up a certain number of points that are acquired through longer drift times and other means. There's quite a bit of dialogue between races, and in the races themselves characters will frequently dish out positive commentary on your performance in the form of text in the top left hand corner of the screen. The game's aesthetics are a fusion of anime and synthwave. I've heard many fans liken the game to the manga Initial D, though I'm unfamiliar with that series myself.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours (for 1/4 Story Arcs)
  
• Extra Content: There are a number of different modes including a Story Mode, Challenge Mode, Grand Prix Mode, Arcade Mode, two player Split-Screen, and Online, as well as a Tutorial. Completion of challenges in Challenge Mode allows you to unlock new vehicles for the other non-Story Modes. Grand Prix Mode allows you to race using different characters/vehicles through a connected set of challenges, while Arcade Mode is for one-off races. I wouldn't recommend this game for online play as the user-base is pretty small (hence it being overlooked) and you're unlikely to find a match. Getting the platinum trophy is fairly difficult.
  

12. Cursed Castilla (Maldita Castilla EX)

• Price: $11.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Action Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 73% from 6 Critic Reviews, 72% from 13 User Ratings
  
• Description: This is an action platformer that emulates arcade games from the latter half of the 1980s, but it is probably most reminiscent of Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts. The creator, Locomalito, states that the soundtrack uses the true arcade sound of the YM2203 chip. The game is hard, but the checkpoints are never more than a minute or two apart, and the lives' system/continue system has no penalties outside of locking you out of trophies. This is a very boss dense game - in the ~4 hour run-time it takes to complete the game, you fight 19 bosses. The handful of weapons and items you pick up helps lend variety to the combat, and no two boss fights feel the same.
  
• Completion Time: ~4 Hours
  
• Extra Content: The game has two endings. Most players will get the bad ending the first time around and be locked out of the final stage (which is the longest stage in the game). You do have to play through the game again to get the good ending, but you'll likely do it in half the time. If you want to see all the major content on your first go around, I recommend looking up how to get the good ending before you play the game. As far as trophies are concerned, the platinum trophy is very difficult to obtain. If you like an extreme challenge, this one's for you.
  

13. Pato Box

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Punch-Out-like 3D Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 71% from 4 Critic Reviews, N/A from 1 User Ratings
  
• Description: Pato Box follows an anthropomorphic duck boxer on an adventure through a stylistic noir comic book world. “Pato” is a Spanish word that translates to “Duck” in English (the game was developed by a Mexican studio). The boss fights are heavily inspired by Punch-Out’s gameplay, but there are levels outside of these fights to help differentiate it. Most of the levels can be selected in any order you choose and typically serve as a leadup to the boss fight. Bosses are usually introduced by a cutscene followed by some dialogue taunting Pato Box. The levels play entirely differently from the fights, but the themes of the level match those of the bosses. The levels will employ various elements of evasion, stealth, exploration, and a few time-based mini-games. The casino level, for example, will have you walk around the casino looking for chips and punching the slot machines to earn enough to pay entrance to the fight, while the food factory has you evading stompers, sawblades, and butcher knives as you work your way through the level. There are variety of things to find throughout the levels: tokens for decorations in Pato Box’s room, backstory on the boss of the level and the world, and tips on how to win the upcoming fight. The fights themselves lock Pato Box in the middle of the screen, allowing you to block, juke left or right, and perform a low or high jab to the left or right. The game foregoes a HUD in favor of a visual representation of your health via scars on your body, which I thought was a nice touch. While the levels and bosses play pretty differently from each other, they’re weaved together by a dark and intriguing story that follows Pato Box’s quest for retribution against an evil corporation.
  
• Completion Time: ~7 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There’s an Arcade Mode that lets you replay boss fights and some collectibles to find in the main campaign. The trophies are very difficult, and many ask you to beat a boss without taking a single hit.
  

14. The Count Lucanor

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Top Down Adventure/Horror
  
• Metacritic: 70% from 2 Critic Reviews, 66% from 10 User Ratings
  
• Description: The Count Lucanor’s story is very fairy tale-esque – more like a classic fairy tale as it can be pretty dark and grotesque at times. On his 10th birthday, Hans chooses to leave his mother in a quest for wealth. After some walking and conversation with NPCs you find along the way, you stumble upon a large mansion and find that the count of this mansion is looking to pass his wealth onto an heir who can prove himself worthy – “worthy” in this case being the one who can figure out the count’s name. From here, you are tasked with adventuring through the mansion and solving environmental puzzles in a nonlinear way to acquire the letters that spell the count’s name. There is a survival horror element to the game, as you are unable to attack the enemies in the mansion and instead must crawl under tables and find other ways around them. You can place candles around the mansion to light it up to help you better evade enemies, but your usage is limited (though you can find more).
  
• Completion Time: ~4 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are five different endings and some puzzles/rooms you don’t even have to do. This could double your playtime – maybe even more if you don’t use a guide. The platinum trophy requires every ending and a few other things but is pretty easy to get if you use a guide.
  

15. The Bunker

• Price: $19.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: FMV Point & Click Adventure/Horror
  
• Metacritic: 69% from 14 Critic Reviews, 59% from 39 User Ratings
  
• Description: The Bunker is an FMV point & click adventure, meaning it features real actors and environments just like a live action movie. Many of the actors involved have been in high profile movies/TV shows as well, including The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, Star Wars, and Penny Dreadful. The game takes place in a fallout shelter and follows the last survivor as he tries to find a way outside following the death of his mother, after living 30+ years in the bunker. The gameplay has you solving puzzles and finding ways to proceed to the next area. The story is the focal point of the game though, and it frequently switches between the past and the present to tell its story. There’s a good juxtaposition between the lively past and the lonely present that makes you question how the protagonist ended up as the last survivor. There’s only one narrative choice to make in the game, and it comes at the very end. The game also works in handheld mode with touchscreen functionality if you'd prefer to play it that way.
  
• Completion Time: ~2. Hour Completion Time*
  
• Extra Content: You can replay the game and try to find all the collectibles. Most of them give more background on the story. You can trigger the ending you did not choose the first time around by simply reloading the last checkpoint, so there is no need to play through the whole game again to unlock it. Getting the platinum trophy is fairly easy.
  

16. A Tale of Paper

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 3D Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 60% from 4 Critic Reviews, 70% from 3 User Ratings
  
• Description: A Tale of Paper takes direct inspiration from Little Nightmares, sporting the same sideview camera angle and minimalist narrative. It’s a little less creepy and has the interesting twist of transforming into a variety of different origamis on the fly: from a little alien creature, to a frog, to a ball, to a paper airplane, etc., all with the push of a button. You’ll use a combination of different origami shapes to overcome the obstacles in the area, and you’ll be accompanied by some gorgeous sceneries in the process. The gameplay is pretty easy in both its platforming and puzzles, making it an easygoing, movie-esque kind of game. While the story is minimalist, it results in a satisfying conclusion, and it really feels like you’ve been through quite a journey even with the short runtime. The game evokes the feeling of being a tiny specimen in a larger-than-life world – Toy Story 2 is probably the most apt comparison I can make. Outside of Little Nightmares, I haven’t played another game quite like this.
  
• Completion Time: ~1.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: I got seven of the eight origami collectibles in my first run-through. The trophies also only offer a few extra things to do, but I’d recommend reading the list of trophies before you play the game if you want to get the relatively easy platinum trophy.
  

17. Late Shift

• Price: $12.49
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Interactive Film
  
• Metacritic: 59% from 15 Critic Reviews, 68% from 52 User Ratings
  
• Description: If you liked Detroit: Become Human or Until Dawn, Late Shift will be right up your alley. This game is a bit different from both those titles in that it's an FMV, with the gameplay solely consisting of the choices you make. You receive prompts at key moments in the story on what you want your character to do next, and this effects the outcome of the game. It plays more like Black Mirror's Bandersnatch, though this game came before it. The story follows an everyman who gets tangled up in London's criminal underground just as a result of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
  
• Completion Time: ~1.5 Hour Completion Time*
  
• Extra Content: There are 180 choice points and 7 different endings. There is a platinum trophy, and I only got 4 out of 21 of the trophies on my first playthrough. There are a number of different routes to take with the game.
  

18. SINNER: Sacrifice for Redemption

• Price: $18.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Soulslike Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 57% from 8 Critic reviews, 38% from 15 User Ratings
  
• Description: SINNER: Sacrifice for Redemption is a Soulslike boss rush - there are no levels and only small area before each boss to practice your moves. There are eight bosses, the first seven allowing you to fight in any order, each representing the seven deadly sins. You are equipped with everything the game has to offer from the beginning (except for the New Game+ weapon they give you), and instead of becoming more powerful, you gradually lose things with each boss you defeat, hence the “sacrifice” in the title. It’s like a reverse RPG. Each boss has a different sacrifice associated to it – one may deplete your throwing items’ usage, while another will deplete your health and stamina. Picking the best order to fight them in adds a little strategic thinking to the game, as you may be more dependent on your large health and stamina bar more than your throwing items’ usage, for example. The game is fairly difficult, so your victories over each boss feel very gratifying when they do come.
  
• Completion Time: ~5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There is New Game+ that offers you an additional weapon. The trophies task you with a few things you have to pull off in battles, and the platinum trophy is pretty easy to obtain.
  

19. Verlet Swing

• Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 3D Platformer
  
• Metacritic: N/A from 0 Critic Review, 80% from 2 User Ratings
  
• Description: Verlet Swing’s aesthetic is as intriguing as its gameplay: you are tasked with grappling and swinging yourself across these vaporwave styled levels without hitting anything. The levels are all very short, but you’re likely to play many levels dozens of times before even finishing it… just to get a 1/4 rank. The ranking system is actually very cool, in that it encourages you to find alternative paths or sometimes just building up more momentum to get to the end faster. Most levels do seem to have a set path, but at the same time, with the proper grappling of the mechanics, you can forge your own, which is a game in itself.
  
• Completion Time: ~7 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There’s an in game challenge menu that mostly recycles a lot of the base game content – though there’s a particularly funny one that switches the perspective to third person to play as a knockoff Spiderman. You can also go back and try to get the best possible time for each level. Getting the platinum trophy is extremely hard and I believe is at 0.1% completion.
  

20. Neon Drive

• Price: $9.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Rhythm
  
• Metacritic: N/A from 0 Critic Reviews, 70% from 7 User Ratings
  
• Description: Neon Drive is a challenging rhythm game with a synthwave aesthetic and appropriately matching music. The objective of the game is to evade the obstacles coming at you by transitioning between four lanes at the right moment using either two of the face buttons, D-Pad, or shoulder buttons. Personally I found the shoulder buttons worked best. The game will occasionally transform you into other vehicles that mix the gameplay up a bit - one notable example is when you turn into a plane and transition between eight lanes in a 360 degree orientation. There are only eight levels that are all about three minutes in length if you were to beat them with no deaths, with two checkpoints and two health points that regenerate between checkpoints. While this all sounds very generous, most of these levels will still take you dozens of tries, though the life reset is almost immediate so you can get back into the action right away.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are two harder difficulties, an endurance mode that sees how long you can go without dying, a free run mode that allows you to play through the game without reset (only unlocked after beating each level), and online leaderboards. The trophies are very hard to get, and there is no platinum trophy.
  

Conclusion
My top 5 on the list in order would be the following: (1.) Hayfever, (2.) Valfaris, (3.) Cursed Castilla: (Maldita Castilla EX), (4.) Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight, and (5.) Bleep Bloop.
Have you played any of these games? What are some other overlooked single player indie games?
If you’re looking for more indie games to play, see my post here:

• 225 Local Multiplayer Games from 45 Different Genres to Play on PlayStation 5
  
• 10 Upcoming Indie/AA Games
  

George Smith was an American man who, while on his honeymoon in 2005, was reported to have fallen overboard and drowned. Due to his remains never being located and the suspicious details of his apparent death the case remains unsolved.
Background
George Allen Smith was born on October 3rd, 1978. At the age of 26 he had been helping his family run their liquor store in Cos Cob, Connecticut. Described as clean-cut and smart, George was planning to take over the running of the liquor store once he had married his Fiancé, Jennifer Hagel.
Jennifer Hagel was 25 in 2005 and was about to begin a job as a third grade teacher, she had studied and graduated from Roger William's university with a Masters in Education the year before.
The couple had married in June 2005 in what friends and family described as a the perfect story-book wedding at the Inn at Castle Hill, Newport, Rhode Island. For their honeymoon, the couple had decided to take a Mediterranean Cruise.
The Cruise Ship
The Cruise Ship that the newlyweds would be travelling one was the 'Brilliance of the Seas', the ship is a 90,000 Ton, 292 meter cruise ship operated by Royal Carribean Cruises and in 2005 was operating the Mediterranean route between Italy, Greece and Turkey.
With over 850 crew and capacity for more then 2,500 passengers on board, the ship is a large hotel complex at sea. The trip that George and Jennifer Smith elected to take was the longest of the trips offered at the time by the company, a two week round-trip that took in several stops in Italy, Greece and Turkey along the way.
The Events of July 5th 2005
The couple had boarded the ship with thousands of others in Barcelona, just a few days after their wedding in late June. They were said to be very happy and quickly made friends with some other couples, notably fellow honeymooners Paul and Galina Kvitnisky who described them as normal down to earth people who were great to talk to.
The Cruise Ship was travelling off the coast of Turkey on the night of July 4th. The Kvitniskys and the Smith's reportedly had dinner before going to the Casino around 1-2am on the morning of July 5th. The Kvitniskys later said that George was a competent gambler and with his Breitling watch and prosperous appearance he fit right in.
While at the casino George met up with a friend he had made on the trip named Josh Askin, he was teaching him to play craps and Josh's friends, cousins Zachary and Greg Rozenburg joined them with their friend Rusty Kofman. This was apparently interrupted when George noticed a cruise ship employee was getting close with his wife.
Witnesses later said that a Croupier named Lloyd Botah had been showing Jennifer a lot of attention as the night went on. A fellow cruise ship employee said that the nature of their relationship wasnt known to him but that what he had seen certainly went beyond professional boundaries.
When the casino closed at 2:30am, George, Jennifer, Lloyd, Josh, Zach, Greg and Rusty all headed for the disco, sitting at a table together the group had been reportedly drinking absinthe that had been smuggled onboard when George got into an argument with Lloyd Botah about his conduct around Jennifer. The argument reportedly moved to the dance floor and Jennifer and George had a loud argument infront of everyone before she kicked him in the groin and stormed out of the disco.
Lloyd Botah then left to follow Jennifer while a clearly drunk George was helped back to the table by the others. Shortly after the men were seen helping an unsteady George out of the disco. The 5 men walked back to George and Jennifer's Stateroom but when George saw that Jennifer wasnt there he became annoyed and set off to search for her, the other men later said they waited in the room until George returned and the men continued to drink.
Clete Hyman, the man staying in the room next to George and Jennifer, reported that there was loud noises coming from the room next door around 3am, he later explained it sounded like a party or loud card game and had reported the couple previously on the trip for making a racket.
Josh Askin, Greg and Zachary Rozenburg and Rusty Koffman all claim they left George alone in his room shortly after this complaint was made, Clete Hyman says he saw only three men leave the room at that time through his peep hole.
Clete Hyman said he had then tried to return to bed but within a few minutes heard a loud thud, assuming someone had knocked something over or drunkenly collapsed he went to sleep.
Jennifer Smith was found passed out drunk and lying in a hallway in another area of the ship by several crew members and was helped back to her room around 5am, she said that George wasnt there and she slept for a few hours before then waking in the morning and going to a spa despite not knowing where he was.
When questioned later about this lack of concern for her husband, Jennifer explained that they had both slept in other staterooms at different times on the trip so she had assumed he had spent the night somewhere else.
Before she had finished her massage at the spa, Jennifer Smith was paged over the ships intercom and summoned to her Stateroom. Blood had been found smeared on the canopy of a lifeboat that lay beneath the rooms balcony by a passing passenger and the ships captain had wanted to check that neither her or her husband had been injured.
It was at this time it was discovered George was no longer onboard the ship and the alarm was raised.
Investigation
Jennifer Smith was taken ashore along with Josh Askin and they were both questioned by Turkish police within 24 hours of George's disappearance. Jennifer was found to have an alibi though it wasnt made public what this was other then the moment the crew members found her passed out in a hallway around 5am.
Josh claimed that he and his 3 companions had returned to their rooms and ordered room service before staying up to watch tv, the Turkish police found that while calls had been made around the time they said, no food was recorded as having been delivered to them.
Josh then reboarded the cruise ship to continue the journey while Jennifer immediately flew back to the U.S. It was 48 hours later that George was declared likely drowned at sea, his remains were never found.
Josh, Greg, Zachary and Rusty were all expelled from the cruise ship several days later when they allegedly raped a female passenger and taped it on a camcorder they had with them. The Italian Police investigated this and once they reviewed the footage declared that no rape had occurred and the men and their families were put on a flight home.
George's family arrived in Europe by the end of the week, appearing on tv appealing for information and passing out flyers to cruise ship passengers, they criticised openly at the time Jennifer's actions in flying home so quickly and not returning with them. Jennifer and George's family both stated at the time that they believed George had been murdered.
Later Developments
George's family found Jennifer becoming more distant and argumentative with them as the months went by, they said that she once became angry that they had used a cropped photo of George with Actress Tara Reid instead of a photo that included her for missing posters and badges.
In 2006 the Family hired a private investigator, the investigator claimed they had information that indicated a video tape existed showing Jennifer having sex with other men prior to the night of George's disappearance, this tape failed to be located but some in the family have alleged it is in the possession of Royal Caribbean Cruises.
Josh, Greg and Zachary later appeared on Geraldo Rivera and maintained the same story they had already told, Rusty didnt appear.
In late 2006, Jennifer Hagel accepted a $1.1million settlement from Royal Caribbean Cruises, this was far beyond the legal required amount of $70,000 at the time. George's family criticised Jennifer for accepting the money and took her and Royal Carribean to court over the amount of money and the circumstances of the settlement, they alleged Jennifer was trying to avoid details of sexual affairs that occurred onboard during the cruise being made public. Jennifer stated shortly after receiving the settlement that George likely died as a result of a drunken accident.
The FBI became involved shortly after George's disappearance and began a lengthy investigation which found evidence that the Turkish Police had missed. Blood stains were located inside the cabin as well as on the balcony above the lifeboat canopy. Most telling for the investigation was that the blood stain on the canopy was in the distinctive shape of a man, an unusual thing to be found in accidents on cruise ships, typically little blood is left when someone falls from a cruise ship at sea but this seemed to suggest George had already been bleeding badly when he had landed on the canopy and then had slipped off into the sea.
The FBI investigation officially ended in 2015 finding they couldnt rule in the case in any way and returned an open finding. George's family immediately began petitioning the courts to refer the case to a new jurisdiction in order for it to be investigated.
Theories
George Accident
George was heavily intoxicated according to witnesses and cctv from the cruise ship on the night of July 5th, it is possible like in many circumstances of deaths on Cruise Ships that he had stumbled over the Balcony railing and to his death before eventually sliding off of the canopy and into the sea. This is disputed by his family but supported by the accounts of Josh, Greg, Zachary, Rusty and Jennifer.
George Suicide
George may have been despondent about Jennifer leaving the Disco with Lloyd Botah on the night of July 5th, once he was alone in the stateroom and began to sober up he could have been overcome with grief at the failing of his marriage and considering the alleged other sexual partners she had on the trip likely had become depressed and jumped from the balcony, in the dark he may not have seen the canopy below and lay there injured or dead for some time before falling from it into the sea.
George Murdered
George may have gotten into an altercation with whichever of the men had remained behind on the night of July 5th, Clete Hyman has said only 3 left but never publicly identified who he didnt see leaving. George may have been attacked or robbed by the man who stayed behind only to die and then be thrown from the balcony in an attempt to cover up the crime.
It has also been alleged that he may have gotten into an argument with Jennifer due to her whereabouts not being publicly known while the Turkish Police have said they were satisfied her movements had been accounted for.
Lloyd Botah had also been suggested as a suspect in the case as he and George had already almost come to blows earlier that morning, his whereabouts on July 5th after leaving the Disco have not been made public.
Regardless of the circumstances of his murder, Georges family supports the theory he met his end through foul play and people close to him that night have answers.
Jennifer Later Developements
Jennifer later went back to being known as Jennifer Hagel, left the search in 2007 and went to work at the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Research in New York. She then moved to Fairfield, Connecticut to work with Near and Far Aid, a non-profit that supports the homeless.
In 2009, Jennifer Hagel married Jeff Agne, a Financial Advisor who worked in Global Healthcare Equities for Pinebridge Investments. The couple went on to have three children as of 2015, Jennifer's family said they couldnt be happier that she has moved on with her life.
The Death of Greg Rozenburg
15 years after George was lost at sea, Greg Rozenburg was murdered on the doorstep of his home by an unknown perpetrator or perpetrators. Police in Davie, Broward County, Florida said in September of 2020 that they hoped their continued investigation into Greg's death might reveal more about George's.
Conclusion
George Smith's case remains unresolved, it has torn family and friends apart and set different jurisdictions investigations at odds with each other. Without his remains being found it's unlikely a satisfactory conclusion could ever be reached in this case.
What do you believe happened to George Smith on July 5th, 2005?
Wikipedia Link
News Article
Photo of Bloodstained Canopy below balcony

• Here’s a link to the first post with the first 10 games.
  
• Here’s a link to the second post with the second set of 10 games.
  
• Here’s a link to the fourth post with the fourth set of 10 games.
  

There are also some links within the first link that discuss indie local multiplayer games as well.
Introduction
We're all familiar with the Hotline Miami's, Hollow Knight's, and Celeste's of the world. These are some of the indie games that hit the big time. Of course, for every one of these games, there's 100 other indie games that have been glossed over, relegated to a spot in a digital store few people will ever find themselves in. I wanted to bring attention to some of these lesser known indie games once again.
Details About the List
I'm going to order them according to Metacritic Critic Ratings. Steam is the only one on the list with all 10 games featured (Steam has 10 of them, Switch has 9 of them, PlayStation 4 has 7 of them, and Xbox One has 5 of them), but the Switch gets more reviews than the other platforms, so I will it use the Switch version of all the games for their review scores, except #8, where I will use the Steam version, since that’s the only version of it available. The two bottom games have pretty low critic ratings (60% with 1 Critic Review and 53% with 2 Critic Reviews). I personally disagree with the low scores of these two games, but it's only fair that you hear from more than just me. Keep in mind that games with only one or two User Ratings on Metacritic will not show the score. A game needs at least three User Ratings on Metacritic before the score will be shown. This is not the case for Critic Reviews.
Currently 9 of the games are on sale on Steam right now, and 5 of them are on sale on Switch. None of them are on sale on the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One at the moment.
For the purpose of this post, I’m just going to stick with saying “achievements” and “getting all achievements” instead of “trophies” and “platinum trophy” since Steam has all 10 games on the list. You can basically substitute these with “trophies” and “platinum trophy” if you’re a PlayStation gamer. I will make mention of the two games on here that don’t include a platinum trophy however.
Platforms will include a link to the U.S. store page of the game for each platform. Price is in U.S. dollars.
1. Ultra Hat Dimension

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $4.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $3.74
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Level-based Puzzle Game
  
• Metacritic: 85% from 1 Critic Review, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: Ultra Hat Dimension follows Bea through a series of rooms in a palace on a quest to undo the magical spell that has made the mythical Spluff creatures want to attack one another. There is a little bit of backstory via one sentence thoughts from Bea in between levels, but nothing major here. The gameplay revolves equipping four different types of hats and using them to evade or push Spluffs around to retrieve the key and reach the door. Each Spluff dons one of four different hats which effects their behavior towards other Spluffs and you. You will be punched one tile back by every Spluff unless you’re wearing the same hat as the Spluff. Spluffs interact with one another differently depending on what hat they’re wearing in a rock, paper, scissors kind of way – they may punch a Spluff back one space, get into a scuffle that allows you to get close to them without wearing a hat, or they may temporarily disable them in a way that allows you to access the space the Spluff consumes within eight moves. There are undo and reset buttons included that allow you to quickly rewind mistakes. There are some clever puzzles accompanied by catchy tunes and a charming pixel art aesthetic. The difficulty is about average.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Since this is published by Ratalaika Games, getting all the achievements can be obtained after only clearing 2/3 of the levels. There are a few custom maps on the PC version of the game but no additional content on consoles.
  

2. Bot Vice

• Platforms: Switch, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $9.99
  
• Switch Sale Price: $2.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $1.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 1990s Arcade-like Fixed Screen Shoot ‘em Up
  
• Metacritic: 80% from 1 Critic Review, 90% from 1 User Rating
  
• Description: Bot Vice follows Erin Saver through a dystopian world with anthropomorphic animals and a 1990s arcade aesthetic, complete with cheesy dialogue and an announcer that shouts your item pickups with enthusiasm. Each level takes place on one screen and tasks you with defeating waves of enemies while minimizing damage to yourself. You are always locked behind a barrier at the bottom of the screen and are only able to move left and right. In terms of move set, you have a number of different guns and projectiles, your saber, your roll, and you can duck behind cover to make it through each level. Parts of the barrier can be destroyed, leading to gaps where normal enemy fire can reach you. Weapons and powerups will spawn from hitting a certain type of enemy that you’ll then have to pick up from where they land. The gameplay is fast paced and allows you to unleash a heavy amount of firepower on some very big foes. The levels are all short but will likely take a number of attempts to complete, as there is a lot to take account of on screen. Nearly every level has a mini boss appear at the end, with a main boss featured after every five levels. At the end of every level, you’ll be rated based on your completion time and health points remaining. I only got a few high ratings on my first time through, so there’s an additional challenge there if you want an A rank on every level.
  
• Completion Time: ~3.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: Beating the main campaign unlocks an additional 25 levels – this is on top of the 25 bridged together in the main campaign. Getting all achievements is somewhat difficulty, as you must beat all 25 levels in the main campaign with at least an A rank.
  

3. Valfaris

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $24.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $9.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Run & Gun
  
• Metacritic: 79% from 19 Critic Reviews, 81% from 36 User Ratings
  
• Description: Valfaris is one of the best run & gun games I've ever played. You play as Prince Therion who returns to his home planet of Valfaris on a quest to kill his father. It's themed around a fictional planet and has a gross alien vibe coupled with heavy metal music. The music doesn't override the other audio in the game, and it does a nice job of upping the ante when you're fighting a boss – of which there are many. You're equipped with a primary gun, a more powerful mana-based gun, a sword, and a shield that can block with mana or parry. There are a number of weapons to acquire throughout the game, and the guns in particular do a great job of feeling different. You’re able to upgrade your weapons with Blood Metals. Some Blood Metals are found in plain sight, others are rewarded for defeating a tough enemy, and some are given for going off the beaten path. These upgrades typically just up the firepower but will sometimes introduce a secondary move to your weapon. There are checkpoints every two minutes or so, and most bosses will have a checkpoint just before them (only the weaker bosses come after a gauntlet of enemies). The game is a little hard at points, but overall it strikes a nice balance of feeling accomplished for overcoming the challenges without getting overly frustrating.
  
• Completion Time: ~8 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are a few secrets to find throughout the game that are off the beaten path, though I was able to find 2/3 of them on my first playthrough. I found all but one weapon as well. The replayability comes from New Game+, which allows you to take all your upgraded weapons into a harder version of the game. Since the weapons all function a bit differently, this can be lots of fun.
  

4. Inertial Drift

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $19.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $15.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Racing
  
• Metacritic: 79% from 6 Critic Reviews, 77% from 3 User Ratings
  
• Description: Inertial Drift's distinguishing characteristic is its employment of the right analog stick for drifting. This takes a little getting used to, but it feels great once you get the hang of it, creating some exhilarating moments when perfecting corner turns. The game has 10 unique tracks + 10 reversed tracks, 16 vehicles, and four separate story arcs. Each story arc is only a couple of hours long and features a different protagonist with a different vehicle. Since you’ll be racing on the same track a few times, there are a few gameplay variations that differ from just reaching the finish line at the end, such as racking up a certain number of points that are acquired through longer drift times and other means. There's quite a bit of dialogue between races, and in the races themselves characters will frequently dish out positive commentary on your performance in the form of text in the top left hand corner of the screen. The game's aesthetics are a fusion of anime and synthwave. I've heard many fans liken the game to the manga Initial D, though I'm unfamiliar with that series myself.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours (for 1/4 Story Arcs)
  
• Extra Content: There are a number of different modes including a Story Mode, Challenge Mode, Grand Prix Mode, Arcade Mode, two player Split-Screen, and Online, as well as a Tutorial. Completion of challenges in Challenge Mode allows you to unlock new vehicles for the other non-Story Modes. Grand Prix Mode allows you to race using different characters/vehicles through a connected set of challenges, while Arcade Mode is for one-off races. I wouldn't recommend this game for online play as the user-base is pretty small (hence it being overlooked) and you're unlikely to find a match.
  

5. Golf Peaks

• Platforms: Switch, Steam, iPhone/iPad
  
• Regular Price: $4.99
  
• Switch & Steam Sale Price: $1.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Level-based Puzzle Game
  
• Metacritic: 78% from 22 Critic Reviews, 78% from 16 User Ratings
  
• Description: Golf Peaks is a card-base puzzle game that plays nothing like the actual sport of golf outside of getting a tiny ball in a hole. Instead you’ll choose your moves by using the cards at the bottom of the screen. They have different numbers and trajectory that result in hitting the bar different distances and different heights. You aim the ball up, down, left, or right, and then select the card you want to use. There are a number of different tiles that have their own effects that you have to account for. Ramps, for example, will force your ball down unless you’re able to have your ball travel to the top in one move. There were a number of times when I thought I had tried every solution just to finally find the right solution. The minimalist visual style and relaxing music service the game’s simple but engaging premise. The difficulty is about average.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are three extra levels in each world which will add about another two hours of game time, as they are typically harder than the nine levels found in their respective world. Getting all achievements requires beating all regular levels and bonus levels, plus finding a secret in the credits section.
  

6. Horizon Shift ‘81

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Switch,, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $8.99 on PlayStation 4 & Steam, $9.99 on Switch
  
• Switch Sale Price: $1.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $1.79
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 1980s Arcade-like Fixed Screen Shoot ‘em Up
  
• Metacritic: 78% from 4 Critic Reviews, 80% from 4 User Ratings
  
• Description: This is actually a sequel to the Steam exclusive Horizon Shift, which sports a different aesthetic and isn’t quite as good from what I’ve read. Horizon Shift ’81 mimics the look of a fixed screen shoot ‘em up from the early 1980s but comes with a few twists of its own. Your ship is positioned in the middle of the screen on a horizontal line rather than the bottom, and you have to flip between sides to deal with enemies coming from both the top and the bottom. The line can be broken in different places – leaving a gap where you can fall to your death – by asteroids and certain projectiles. This is where the expanded moveset comes into play: you can jump between gaps and also over enemies who attach themselves to the line. Enemies on the line can also be taken out with a horizontal shield bash that regenerates after a few seconds. There is a boss after every five stages, some of which will actually bring the line down to the bottom of the screen, while others retain it in the middle. Horizon Shift ’81 has a number of customizable settings that change everything from the aesthetics, to the difficulty, to the checkpoint/lives system, to the speed of the game, and more. The two main modes are a choice between three lives with a checkpoint before and after every boss, or a checkpoint at the beginning of every level but only one life.
  
• Completion Time: ~3.5 Hours (Normal Mode on Arcade Style)
  
• Extra Content: There are a number of ways to customize your future playthroughs, and there’s an unlockable boss rush mode after finishing the game. The few achievements are relatively easy to obtain. There is no platinum trophy for this game.
  

7. Pato Box

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, Steam, PlayStation Vita
  
• Regular Price: $14.99
  
• Switch Sale Price: $3.74
  
• Steam Sale Price: $2.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Punch-Out-like 3D Action Adventure
  
• Metacritic: 74% from 14 Critic Reviews, 75% from 13 User Ratings
  
• Description: Pato Box follows an anthropomorphic duck boxer on an adventure through a stylistic noir comic book world. “Pato” is a Spanish word that translates to “Duck” in English (the game was developed by a Mexican studio). The boss fights are heavily inspired by Punch-Out’s gameplay, but there are levels outside of these fights to help differentiate it. Most of the levels can be selected in any order you choose and typically serve as a leadup to the boss fight. Bosses are usually introduced by a cutscene followed by some dialogue taunting Pato Box. The levels play entirely differently from the fights, but the themes of the level match those of the bosses. The levels will employ various elements of evasion, stealth, exploration, and a few time-based mini-games. The casino level, for example, will have you walk around the casino looking for chips and punching the slot machines to earn enough to pay entrance to the fight, while the food factory has you evading stompers, sawblades, and butcher knives as you work your way through the level. There are variety of things to find throughout the levels: tokens for decorations in Pato Box’s room, backstory on the boss of the level and the world, and tips on how to win the upcoming fight. The fights themselves lock Pato Box in the middle of the screen, allowing you to block, juke left or right, and perform a low or high jab to the left or right. The game foregoes a HUD in favor of a visual representation of your health via scars on your body, which I thought was a nice touch. While the levels and bosses play pretty differently from each other, they’re weaved together by a dark and intriguing story that follows Pato Box’s quest for retribution against an evil corporation.
  
• Completion Time: ~7 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are motion controls for the boss fights exclusive to the Switch version of the game. There’s also an Arcade Mode that lets you replay boss fights and some collectibles to find. The achievements are very difficult, and many ask you to beat a boss without taking a single hit.
  

8. Primal Light

• Platforms: Steam
  
• Regular Price: $14.99
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: 2D Action Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 60% from 1 Critic Review, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: Primal Light follows an alien caveman through a mostly linear series of 10 levels and 10 bosses. There are some hidden paths that lead to health and health potion upgrades, charms, and lives, with usually a challenge between you and the collectible. Charms grant passive effects, like boosting strength after taking a hit from an enemy, and allow for some player choice – there are 12 of them but only two can be wielded at a time. Health potions function similarly to Estus Flask in Dark Souls, in that they regenerate upon death, and finding the right time to use one is a game in itself. As you progress through the game, you get a few mandatory upgrades to your moveset that allow for slightly more complex platforming. The game dons a 16-bit aesthetic but controls feel modern and smooth. You can attack in four directions, and your character has some midair control. Bosses are a particular highlight, both in the visual department and from a gameplay standpoint. There is a lives system, so losing all of them at the end of a level or boss will put you back in the beginning. This is only for the two harder difficulty options – the easiest difficulty option has lives disabled. That said, I played on Normal Mode and only got one Game Over for about three to five of the levels. There is some future DLC planned for the game that will add more levels.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours (Normal Mode/Middle Difficulty Option)
  
• Extra Content: I only got 7/12 charms on my first playthrough, so there are likely a few secrets to go back for. Outside of that, if you played it on one of the lower difficulties you can try your hand at Hardcore Mode. The achievements ask you to do challenging things to get 100%, like collecting all upgrades, beating the game without dying once, and beating Hardcore Mode without using any Continues.
  

9. Tamashii

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, Steam
  
• Regular Price: $5.99 on Steam, $11.99 on consoles
  
• Switch Sale Price: $4.79
  
• Steam Sale Price: $2.49
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Slightly Graphic (Link
  
• Genre: Puzzle Platformer
  
• Metacritic: 53% from 2 Critic reviews, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: Reportedly inspired by obscure Japanese games from the late 1980s and 1990s, Tamashii blends puzzle platforming together with an oppressive atmosphere. The introduction starts with the character being willed into existence by a godlike character that tasks him with destroying the macabre forces that have taken control of and corrupted his chambers. Your character is able to spawn three inanimate clones of himself which is the primary source for most of the platforming and some of the boss fights – you’ll use them to trigger switches and open up new paths. There’s about an even mix of puzzle solving and platforming, and there’s a whole eight bosses in this short adventure (though one is a secret) that are probably the most visually interesting moments in the game. The creatures and backgrounds are effective in selling the dark presentation of the game. The difficulty is about average – maybe slightly easier than most indie puzzle platformers. There is a sequel currently in the works.
  
• Completion Time: ~2.5 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are a few obscure secrets to discover. You can also play through the chambers again with a score meter, and there are certain achievements associated with getting a good score. Getting all achievements isn’t too difficult, but you’ll probably need a guide for some of the secrets.
  

10. Neon Drive

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, Switch, Steam iPhone/iPad
  
• Regular Price: $9.99
  
• Steam Sale Price: $3.49
  
• Picture: Link
  
• Trailer: Link
  
• Genre: Rhythm
  
• Metacritic: N/A from 0 Critic Reviews, N/A from 0 User Ratings
  
• Description: Neon Drive is a challenging rhythm game with a synthwave aesthetic and appropriately matching music. The objective of the game is to evade the obstacles coming at you by transitioning between four lanes at the right moment using either two of the face buttons, D-Pad, or shoulder buttons. Personally I found the shoulder buttons worked best. The game will occasionally transform you into other vehicles that mix the gameplay up a bit - one notable example is when you turn into a plane and transition between eight lanes in a 360 degree orientation. There are only eight levels that are all about three minutes in length if you were to beat them with no deaths, with two checkpoints and two health points that regenerate between checkpoints. While this all sounds very generous, most of these levels will still take you dozens of tries, though the life reset is almost immediate so you can get back into the action right away.
  
• Completion Time: ~3 Hours
  
• Extra Content: There are two harder difficulties, an endurance mode that sees how long you can go without dying, a free run mode that allows you to play through the game without reset (only unlocked after beating each level), and online leaderboards. The achievements are very difficult. There is no platinum trophy for this game.
  

Special shoutout to Valfaris which is my favorite game on the list and, again, one my favorite 2D run & guns ever.
Have you played any of these games? What are some other overlooked single player indie games?