Lord of War would have you convinced that evil always wins, even against overwhelming odds. However, in the real world, Viktor Bout, of whom the main character is apparently inspired from, is currently rotting in an American prison. As it turns out, illegal arms dealers cannot act with impunity with America's blessing and are in fact not appreciated by the U. S. authorities. Now to give the film credit, arms trafficking is a serious global issue and organizations like INTERPOL do suffer from underfunding. Furthermore, Bout wasn't stopped until around three years after this film was made. The U.S. certainly has a long history of shady (and outright evil) crimes against humanity, however the country's international influence has been more a force of good than the sort of sinister conspiratorial domination that is depicted in this film. In absolute terms, the country's diplomatic methods could be considered "evil," but when compared to the likes of competing superpowers, it behaves benevolently. Mind you, this is all just my opinion. The film's cynical defeatism does not outweigh what is otherwise a well-made film. Cage's performance and charisma is also a plus - as is the film's good pacing.

Humankind is like a multiculturalist hipster version of Civilization. The cover of the game is certainly confusing at first glance, if not cringe-inducing. A blue-haired woman dressed what it appears to be bohemian attire yields an archaic-looking rifle, while other characters from what it appears to be different cultures throughout the world surround her. A black doctor and white Viking-esque woman hold hands and run with the crowd towards something off-screen. These characters however, at least going by the game's trailer, are likely meant to represent player avatars. Humankind is a polished game. On Stadia, I don't recall experiencing many, if any, crashes. The quality of assets is consistent and the background cultural soundtracks are mostly pleasant to the ears. The game plays a lot like Civilization, although I found it more simplistic in design — in many ways for the better. What I don't like is how the game deals with cultures. In Humankind, cultures are treated very superficially. Each era you reach, you can select different cultures that were present or dominant during certain periods of human history. What is confusing is that these eras are essentially divided into technological levels, yet the cultures available in each are not technological equals. Transitions between cultures happen immediately, your civilization can go abruptly from classical architecture to what are essentially mud huts. This would somewhat make sense if your civilization underwent some cataclysmic collapse, but this transition is actually meant to be progression. Aside aesthetic differences, cultures can give you unique buffs and units. The A.I. can also change cultures, resulting in a confusing inconsistent world where societies change from unrelated culture to the next. The A.I. also seems to have a sixth sense. When putting units on auto-explore, they seem to know instinctively where to find important items in the game world. This means that unless you set your units to this setting in the beginning, the A.I. opponents will likely beat you to the first progression era; in the beginning this is important since discovering items is one of the only ways to progress (aside from engaging in combat).

Repetitive and highly unpolished, Saints Row: The Third Remastered is an absurd dark comedic open-world action game — that has some amusing moments but is mostly immature and crude. Numerous bugs are present in the current version (played on Stadia — they also appear on other versions from videos I've seen). These bugs range from aesthetic glitches (missing assets) to buggy menus. For the most part however, the game is playable, aside from occasional crashes. As with any game, save often. The character customization is rather detailed but is filled with visual glitches and inconsistent quality. There is a selection of voices, but they do little (if anything) to change the gameplay or story. Unlike the Grand Theft Auto series, the later instalments of Saints Row aim to be more a mix of an open-world arcade action game with a satirical (if violently nihilistic) take on American popular culture. The cast are all hedonistic psychopaths that care little for civilian causalities. Given the game seldom takes itself remotely seriously, one can overlook this, especially while playing some of the more entertaining mini-games, like "Professor Genki's Super Ethical Reality Climax." By the time I finished the main story and side missions, I didn't find myself having much motivation to play after. The world in Saints Row is not as interactive as the Grand Theft Auto games, although its game world seems lively — there is not much to do beyond senseless mayhem.

I originally reviewed this game on January 31, 2021 via GOG: Sordland needs a wise strongman. To this end, I sided with the Old Guard, enacted emergency powers, banned extremism on the both the left and right, and suppressed ethnic separatism. I rejected any and all bribes from corporate special interests and promoted austerity for myself and for those in my administration. I refused to bail out businesses or give out temporary stimulus, instead I sought long-term goals — investing in rail infrastructure and agriculture. I also invested heavily in education and healthcare, especially in rural areas, while at the same time, introducing privatization to those sectors to make them more competitive and reduce budgetary strains. I reformed the education system to enhance academic freedom and remove political indoctrination. I promoted women's rights for meritocracy, so that citizens of any sex can prevail if they are smart and willing enough. I created an anti-corruption agency, boosted the powers of the police while separating them from the military, and greatly increased the strength of the army. I would also jail the corrupt oligarchs indefinitely without trial, nationalizing their industries and limiting the power of the media. I lowered taxes for small business, increased taxes for larger ones, and passed laws to protect fair competition and workers' rights. I managed to recover the economy with a balanced budget. I made two trade deals with minimal concessions and tightened border security to keep away refugees. I reconciled with and united minorities, and ensured all schools taught a common language while protecting religious freedom. Women and minorities strongly supported my reign by the end. I had consistently promoted peace worldwide and domestically. Due to my tyranny however, my cabinet resigned at the end, so I decided to resign as well and let a new leader take my place — lest I stay in power too long and become another Soll. Good game, but its file size and performance requirements are unnecessarily large.

I originally reviewed this game on January 26, 2021 via GOG: This took me a couple hours to complete, no more than 2–3, or less. I only went through it once, choosing articles, balancing dilemmas, and censoring where necessary in a way that I would if I were in its fictional world. I do not have much motivation to replay since the mechanics are not enough to inspire continued interest. I did not experience any game-breaking bugs, although there was some oddities in the interface, but nothing intolerable or that would otherwise interrupt play. I do not have a gaming computer, playing on a relatively modest laptop with macOS. That being said, this isn't one of those games for "hardcore gamers" or those expecting a very graphical and interactive experience. Performance throughout my playthrough was mostly decent, save for one of the stages of newspaper editing (determining the layout) which for some reason seemed to cause a slow down. Overall this feels like somewhere between a proof of concept and a final release, the story is completely fleshed out and at least the ending that I experienced was pretty detailed in the outcome of my editorial decisions made throughout. The introduction in the beginning had a voice speaking in the background to go along with the text on the screen, but due to the loud sound effect of an old projector, it was hard to listen to it coherently. To make the mechanics more interesting, greater options should be available to the player, such as the ability to hire or dismiss writers, along with budgeting features. It didn't really feel like I was managing a newspaper per se, as much as just being a general editor/censor. What I found most interesting was the grey morality of the world depicted. The government is shown as unduly harsh and austere. On the other hand, the rebels are also violent, threatening, and likely worse (if given the power) than the authoritarian regime they oppose. Ultimately, I found myself siding with the regime on pragmatic grounds and willfully assisting in its propaganda.