My favorite games on Steam Deck

 There are many games available for Steam Deck.  Valve has tested over 13,000 by the end of 2023.  Many work well and some have been re-worked to be better on Steam Deck.  I look at the most-played games from Steam's own records and I might have played one of those.  I don't leap for every US$59.99 game out there.  In fact, I may never have paid that much for a game.

Here are my favourite games on my Steam Deck, in no certain order:

Asphalt 9

Ghostwire: Tokyo

Hi-Fi Rush

Spyro: Reignited Trilogy

Road 96

A Space for the Unbound

Heaven's Vault

Ni No Kuni Remastered

and just this week, Hogwarts Legacy

Supposedly, I have 81 games that are "Great on Deck" but I have installed 47 games on it, with a 1 TB microSD card, as well as internal storage.  I'd really like to get one of those 1 TB m.2 2230 cards but I'm not spending more money just yet.  Equally, I'm not interested in the OLED version of Steam Deck right now.  This one is about one year old.

I was surprised at the performance of Hogwarts Legacy.  So far, it's fine.  However, most games are fine for me.  I'm not a person who looks at the performance overlay to gauge whether I'm having fun or not.  Let the people with a website do that.

If you just got a Steam Deck for Christmas, I hope you enjoy it.  Don't expect everything to be as it was.  Change with the machine.

Update 2023.12.28: I've seen that Hi-Fi Rush and Hogwarts Legacy got some love.  Even Ghostwire: Tokyo, from Tango Gameworks like Hi-Fi Rush, got a mention here or there and A Space for the Unbound did, as well.  I wanted to try Baldur's Gate 3 but it's too expensive and too big.  I appreciate that it works on Macs but they changed their requirements several times and it's more-or-less just available for the most powerful machines.  I had hoped for Divinity - Original Sin requirements, another of Larian's games that runs on Macs.

Update 2024.07.05: I'm seriously upset that a few weeks ago, with the acquisition of Bethesda Studios, the people in charge of Xbox put an end to Tango Gameworks, which produced Hi-Fi Rush and Ghostwire: Tokyo.  There were a lot of other small development houses extinguished but for someone to win awards and then to be dissolved doesn't make sense.  They were in the business of fun, not loot boxes, and that's probably the reason for the decision.  The person in charge of Xbox is also gone.

Update 2024.10.24: SteamOS has been updated to version 3.6.

Gaming without a desktop or laptop computer?

 You've thought about it, haven't you?

Since the Steam Deck has taken hold, and the ASUS ROG Ally has arrived, mobile gaming computers are real and good.

I admit that back when Epyx Games designed their handheld gaming machine with color display, I was interested.  Atari bought it and put it out under their name.  When Nintendo brought out Virtual Boy, it piqued my interest.  However, bad, tiny displays weren't enough for me.

I looked at the Nintendo Switch several times.  The newer, OLED-equipped Switch really looks good, but it's not very powerful for 2023.  So many people bought them in 2020 and 2021 because they were stuck at home, the company did well.  For me, I want different games, and mostly, those games don't end up on Switch.

So, here I am with a Steam Deck and it's good.  I have over 182 games available in Steam, 62 are in the Great on Deck category, and I have 42 games installed.

Earlier, I was watching a YouTube video about installing a game launcher that could handle non-Steam-based games.  You have to exit Steam and go to the Linux/KDE desktop, use the virtual keyboard, and more.  Without a monitor, keyboard, and mouse, it sounds difficult.  It sounds like my 8-bit days before the GUI arrived. The good thing is that there is a GUI.  I'm not sure I want to bother with GOG Galaxy or the Epic Games Launcher on a Steam Deck in desktop mode, though.

Play Games or Mess with the computer?

This reminds me so much of my time at work getting Win98SE and WinNT to work.  Then, going home to my MacOS machines.  I really don't want to mess with the computer.  I bought Steam Deck to play games, not to become a Linux laptop replacement.

Windows Local or Windows Remote?

The good thing about Steam is that it allows you to Stream a game from another machine.  I can stream a game from Steam Deck, Mac, or Windows.  I can even play remotely on Android or iOS.

GeForce NOW will also allow you to run Windows games remotely on Android or iOS.  However, unless you're a premium subscriber, you may be waiting in the queue quite a while.  The Razer Kishi V2 works fairly well, but only supports/is supported by a handful of games I have.  It did not work with my OnePlus 8T and, while it works with my Google Pixel 6a, the Pixel 6a isn't as powerful as the 8T.  Gaming is not so happy, even for light, casual games.  Playing from a Mac is fine, but seems a waste.  I don't have a Kishi V2 for iPhone.

Valve has really worked hard to make Steam Deck a success and I'm pleasantly surprised how many games work well.  I'm not too quick to jump on the latest trends, but Ghostwire: Tokyo and Hi-Fi Rush from Tango Gameworks and Bethesda are pretty bug-free for new releases.

I'm not about to buy Hogwarts Legacy this year, partly, because it's massive, and partly, because it's expensive.  I would rather buy Baldur's Gate 3 sooner but it's going to be buggy and expensive, also.

Then again, if certain games arrived on Mac, I'd be spending to show my support for native Apple Silicon gaming development.  Some games work fine as Intel-based applications but more speed would make things go more smoothly.

It's interesting how many indie games are available for Mac and Windows at the same time while big studios can't seem to muster the courage.

Is playing handheld good enough?

I've played a number of games on Steam Deck, but some of my favorite pick-up-put-down kind of games, like Unreal Tournament 2004, don't work easily.  For the most part, you can play almost anything.  Games that require a keyboard and mouse will be difficult.  I currently have 44 games installed and they mostly work the way I'd expect but I removed one or two because they didn't work correctly.  Valve continues to make improvements in the Proton compatibility layer.

On iPhone and Android, I've been playing the Galaxy on Fire series for around 11 years, since the original Google Nexus 7 tablet with Nvidia Tegra processor and the second generation iPod touch.  Using gyros for the movement was surprisingly good, although it might have looked silly while playing in a waiting room.

Using a Steel Series Nimbus+ for the iPhone and a Razer Kishi V2 for a Google Pixel 6a makes certain games much easier to play.  It's a bit sad that Android controllers can't be more compatible with a wide variety of phones.  My OnePlus 8T just didn't work with the Razer Kishi V2 but the Pixel 6a isn't as powerful.  Now, Razer has a Kishi V2 Pro.

I still find myself at the computer, whether Windows or Mac, to play games that can't easily be played on Steam Deck, Android, or iOS.

I mentioned UT2004 earlier and it's one that I pick up for 15 minutes and then, put away.  I play Toxikk that way as well.  I haven't spent much time on Honkai: Star Rail or Genshin Impact on my phone.  They're too much for my Google Pixel 6a, but run fine on my 2022 iPhone SE.  The display dimensions aren't very good on the iPhone SE, as it doesn't really have a widescreen display.  It does have a powerful processor, though.  Genshin Impact demands a lot of my Windows 11-based machine.  Those fans run quite a bit while playing, even for a few minutes.  Teyvat is shown in great detail.

Which handheld will succeed to break the need for a laptop computer?

I'm looking forward to seeing Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and Legion Go take hold and change the face of gaming.  It's time.

Update 2023.12.14: Attached a keyboard and mouse to my Steam Deck and played Toxikk and Unreal Tournament 2004 as if I had a laptop computer.  It was a good experience, even though I need to adjust to the keyboard.  UT2004 actually ran better on Steam Deck than it ran on my Ryzen 7 5800H through the AMD application launcher using AMD graphics.  That experience on the 5800H was surprising, considering that my experience in 2004 was better on a Mac clone with an ATI card that was probably priced around US$200 in 2004. ATI's XClaim VR was the card from 2004.  The Steam Deck was awesome.

Cheap keyboard/mouse combo from Temu wasn't bad.  Longevity?  Who knows?

 Update 2023.12.26: I have Hogwarts Legacy on Steam Deck.  Performance is good so far.  I need to acclimate myself to the controls or I won't go far. 

Update 2024.01.13: Ayaneo has just announced a Steam Deck-like device using a SteamOS-like operating system, Ayaneo Next Lite.  It's starting just a bit cheaper than Steam Deck, but who knows whether they'll continue to support the operating system or not.  The company has so many devices that it may just be throwing things at the wall to see what sticks.

Update 2024.03.08: Ayaneo Next Lite will be shipped with Windows 11, for some reason.  Orange Pi Neo has been announced with Manjaro Linux Gaming Edition.  Supposedly, it will be less expensive than Steam Deck, even with Hall Effect triggers and a higher resolution display.

I've been acclimating myself to SteamOS desktop and updates through Discover.  Trying to work a machine without a good desktop interface is difficult, but this one is good.  When I was experimenting with Ubuntu back around 2005, there was a lot to dislike.  GNOME desktop wasn't good and Ubuntu's Unity was different, not better.  People raved about KDE but it wasn't that far along, either.

In any case, it's good to have a handheld device that can replace a desktop computer in a pinch.

Update 2024.03.19: Windows 11 Update KB5035853 has caused problems on Ally and others like it that use an AMD APU.  Too many times Microsoft isn't paying attention, but with millions of configurations, how can they test enough of them?

Update 2024.05.27: Things are better and there are more alternatives yet.  ASUS has an Ally X with some redesigns to fix and make things better.  We'll see if it corrects ruining the SD Card by overheating it.  It's still fairly expensive and Armoury Crate isn't much of a game launcher.

The newer Steam Deck OLED is a better performer and the display dazzles all but the most frugal.  There are over 15,000 games Verified or Playable now.

I've been playing a few games from Netmarble, some for Android, some for Windows.  I haven't got to the point where I want to try games outside of Steam on the Steam Deck.  I downloaded two launchers for the desktop, but haven't done much to try them.

Update 2024.09.09: I noticed this week in a couple of articles that AMD is close to a new generation of APUs for handheld devices.  There was a mention of Escher, which was in the same category as Van Gogh, the APU in the Steam Deck.  There was also a mention of Z2 and Z2 Extreme, the processors in the ASUS Ally and Legion Go. Supposedly, the Z2/Z2 Extreme will arrive first quarter of 2025 but the replacement for the Van Gogh may take longer.  It would be interesting to see how Valve handles a replacement for the current APU, not only in software, but in game verification.  Obviously, it has to be fully compatible, but will it support more to deal with technical difficulties we've seen on Steam Deck?

Update 2024.10.24: SteamOS has been updated to version 3.6.

I know that Legion Go and ROG Ally X are making improvements in handheld devices.  I don't see myself switching at this point.  I have a Windows 11 Pro machine and it seems as though the performance has become worse.  Anything extra that they can eek out of Steam Deck would be appreciated.

Don't Track My Web Browsing and Shopping, Please

 Powered by Admiral--I see this a lot.  I have Firefox' Tracking Protection set to Strict.  I'm fine with seeing advertising.  I just don't want it following me everywhere I look.

In the last year, I have removed bookmarks for several websites because they allow tracking advertising.  I couldn't care less about seeing advertising, although I'd prefer something that doesn't sap the life out of my machine.  In the days of Flash, we were inundated with animated advertising and I'm glad it's mostly gone.  I don't deal with Facebook at all, because they make money from your information, and they gladly share it with scumbags.

E.G., the co-owner of the house needed my help with some perfume she was trying to buy through Amazon, through Facebook.  The perfume was US$19.99, so she was buying two.  Facebook gladly supplied her address, but didn't have her credit card.  The website pretending to be Amazon said that the card had expired.  We had just placed an Amazon order a day or two prior to that.

I pulled up the perfume on the Amazon app to find that it was US$150.00.  I had some trouble shutting down the scam, but eventually got rid of it.

I apologized for my insistence and brusqueness, but I really wasn't happy that someone almost got her information.

I don't mind that a site needs advertising to keep it going.  Maybe, I might even buy something through one of the adverts.  Still, if you want to force me, or follow me, forget it.  I have no need to visit a website that has shaky moral fiber.  If they're unwilling to look at what they're presenting to the public, they probably aren't worth the visit.

Update 2023.11.24: Rakuten has complained about my adblocker.  I don't have one, but I have the anti-tracking bits.  If I have to be tracked to get cash rebates, forget it.

Update 2024.02.20: Rakuten is working again on some sites, without my changing settings.  A photographic web site has apparently switched completely to tracking advertisements and I don't see any advertisements, but they're complaining.  The site administration chose them.  I didn't.  I get that they want more money, but when you're not providing information much any longer, and mostly just providing ways to get money from clicks, you might want to be prepared for the effects of your actions.

Updated Mac, Apple Watch, and iPhone to the latest operating systems

 I took the leap to update all three devices around the same time.

Apple Watch Series 7 was on watchOS 9.x, 2022 iPhone SE was on 16.7.2, and MacBook Air was on macOS Monterey.

I usually wait until the x.x.1 version of the operating system, but lately, Apple has not been as good.  I was going to wait until the release that happens right before Christmas.  None of them want to deal with problems over the Christmas holiday, so they usually do a better job of bug elimination.

However, the Mac has been two generations back from Sonoma, and it shows when I want to back up the iPhone.  There is a need to download a compatibility patch of some sort.  I wouldn't be two generations of macOS back except that Ventura has had so many bad reports, I didn't want to encounter any of the problems.

I remember too well how my PowerPC machine was having trouble with Leopard and later, Snow Leopard.  It just never was so good again.  However, the people with Intel-based machines were really happy with the performance.  Transition time anywhere is not so easy.

So, I clicked on Install, and Sonoma was downloaded and around 30 minutes later, was running.

 Downloading 17.1.1 was just as simple and the update process was free from errors.  The time to process the update seemed forever but was suddenly finished.

Requesting the Apple Watch update from the iPhone app was interesting.  At one point, it said "1 Day" and later, it seemed to lock onto "16 Hours", which was way too long.  I restarted the phone and the watch, and then, started the update from the watch.  It requested agreeing to the Terms and Conditions on the phone, which went back and forth four times.  The screen had things overlapping, as if they hadn't really tested the installer.  However, it claimed 2 Hours once everything was handled correctly.

Everything is up to date for the moment.  Battery life on the phone and watch seem less than ideal, which I expect with every new release.  Usually, macOS has some checking and cataloguing to be done for days, and that hasn't seemed to have happened.  It just went to work immediately.  It seems fairly steady.

I hope that it will all be good before the releases in February.  Hopefully, the battery life will be improved with the releases before Christmas.

Update 2023.11.24: The updates are generally good, although the battery life for the watch and phone have been less than ideal.  They have not entered the dreaded red zone yet, though.

People have been mentioning that Sonoma has been quite a bit faster.  Maybe, I'm not seeing it because I don't use Safari as my web browser, plus, I never used Ventura.

That said, I keep waiting for GOG Galaxy and Steam to become Universal applications and speed up a lot of things.  Steam will be the last one of all, I'm almost certain.  With dwindling Mac game play through Steam, Valve doesn't really care to invest much effort.  Perhaps, when the last of the Intel-based machines are on the obsolete list, Valve will do something more.  I really liked playing Half-Life 2 and Portal 2 on my Mac.  It's a shame that I loaded Catalina on my older, Intel-based Mac because I could still play those 32-bit games before Catalina.

Hopefully, with Sonoma' Game Mode running successfully, more developers will arrive with good ports of their games.  Feral Interactive has done well on conversions, and Larian Studios has Macs in mind when developing.

Update 2023.11.30: Sonoma 14.1.2 is out with bug fixes and security updates, as well as iOS 17.1.2.  Updates went smoothly, so I'm hoping for the best.

Update 2023.12.14: My Apple Watch decided that I wanted to update to watchOS 10.2 and did it without asking.  I'm waiting for macOS 14.2.1 and iOS 17.2.1 before I go further.  Those should be out in the next week or two.

Update 2023.12.20: macOS and iOS are on my M1 MacBook Air and 2022 iPhone SE.  They are both working relatively well.  Given that there won't likely be another update until February, I'm satisfied with the performance.  Everything needs better battery life, though.  People with Intel-based Macs are complaining about Sonoma but it's macOS is finally getting better for Apple Silicon-based Macs, in the way that Leopard made Intel-based Macs better, and messed up PowerPC-based Macs.

Sonoma's Game Mode does help, but my SteelSeries Nimbus+ controller is not working, possibly due to a fall.  It disconnects intermittently, even when using a cable.  Why are game controllers so fragile?

Update 2023.12.31: I continue to see users complaining about random bugs and I wonder how many used developer or public beta test versions before using a production version.  I would have that happen occasionally in the early days of Mac OS X but haven't had that happen lately.

I started the mid-2012 MacBook Pro, with Catalina, the other day.  I'm considering a Linux-based distribution, so that I can turn it into a decent game machine.  I can't decide on a distro.  I'm leaning toward Arch or Kubuntu, in hopes that I can load the SteamOS Proton layer in order to play Windows games.  However, with only 512 MB of VRAM, it might not be enough.  Even the full 1 GB of VRAM might not be enough for recent games from my experience with the Omen by HP with a GeForce GTX 1050 with 2 GB of VRAM.    This latest Windows machine has an RTX 3050 Ti with 4 GB of VRAM.

Still, the old MacBook Pro is a good heater with that quad-core Intel i7-3770.

Update 2024.01.28: This week, Apple pushed iOS 17.3, macOS 14.3, and watchOS 10.3.  I don't usually go until the x.x.1 release is ready.  They were pushing a lot and they mentioned a security flaw that might have been exploited, which usually means that it had been exploited.  Ugggh.  So, I updated.  It may have been a fluke but cellular connectivity doesn't seem as stable.  Battery life is still not right.  Hopefully, the x.x.1 update will be ready before Valentine's Day.

I'm still glad to have the M1 MacBook Air on Sonoma.  I wish Apple would really take software development seriously and produce better software.  The only good thing is that we're not paying for bad releases, as we were in the System 7.x and MacOS 8.x, 9.x days.  When I would pay US$79.99 for a release and it wasn't really any better and then, they would discontinue things that really helped, it was rather frustrating.

Update 2024.01.31: I wanted to make room for Death Stranding: Director's Cut and I started deleting games and more because I only had about 153 GB available in Finder.  So, I went through Steam and looked at the games I wasn't playing or that we're as important.  I also deleted so other various stuff, and found through Settings(Control Panel) where various data was too much.  I checked and the available space was 2 GB smaller.  I waited for fseventd to finish and I restarted the machine.  No significant change was shown.  I deleted more and still no change that I could see.  I used the application WhatSize to help me find things that macOS wouldn't let me access easily.  I deleted more but there still was no visible change, even after a restart.  I left it along for a while and it had gone from 151 GB to about 298 GB available.  Today, it was showing 458 GB available.

Apple apparently doesn't have any long term developers watching what they're doing.  It's a bit scary that they've handed off development to people without oversight.  Someone should be checking the quality and fixes should be issued as soon as possible.

Sadly, they only seem to handle security flaws when they're on the news.

I live out in Central Valley and many people from the San Francisco Bay Area live out here now, including people from Apple, HP, and Google.  I wonder how many are so tired from their three hour commute that they're just not productive.  I'm hoping that someone cares but I'm not so sure about that, either.

Update 2024.02.08: Updated to 17.3.1, 10.3.1, and 14.3.1, which is the best fix for a while.  They had a fix for a major inconvenience in editing text on iOS or macOS.  Hopefully, they fixed a lot of other little bugs, as well.

Update 2024.03.22: Updated to 17.4.1 on iOS.  There were some serious problems to fix.  I'm hoping for 14.4.1 and 10.4.1 updates soon.  These are usually ready just before WWDC and the newest major releases.  Then, we wait until August or September.  I suspect that things are better on my iPhone with this newest release, but there are probably loads of bugs remaining.  It seems that Apple just wants to add feature after feature without fixing problems ahead of adding features.  They've become like Adobe.

I'm not ready for iOS 18, especially if they're going to push AI integration.  With the car project halted, AI developers are available, but should they experiment in the background more and wait to move such work into the real world?

Update 2024.08.07: iOS 17.6.1 and macOS 14.6.1 are available.  Apparently, they weren't quite finished with the bug fixes, but got them out just a couple of days later, rather than two or three weeks later.  That may be everything for the current operating systems.  I'm not ready to move to the next, even more buggy versions.

2024.09.17: Warning!  Updated to iOS 17.7 and macOS 14.7 today.  Went to California DMV to renew my license.  Filled out the application on my phone through the process to be ready for the window.  I got a notification and my application was GONE.  I could not log into the system through the California DMV app but Apple should have been checking since so many people working there live in California.  Maybe, someone at headquarters will return with a story and the fix will be out next week.

Killed my Corsair M55 RGB Pro playing Genshin Impact and more

 I'm a bit tough on my mouse.  Over the years, I've settled on Logitech Trackman Marble when I want to work.  I'm always a bit short on desk space.  Besides, that first Trackman that hung on the edge of my laptop computer keyboard in 1990 was something special.  It should have been for US$159.99.

These days, I wouldn't think of spending so much.  So, when I was having trouble with my Corsair M55 RGB Pro, I looked for something different.  Corsair has a lot of complaints, for whatever reason.  The iCue software was a pain and the mouse would just not connect at times.  Pulling the plug and re-inserting would get it going.  I chose it after having a disastrous end to my Logitech G402 Hyperion Fury mouse I had that suddenly stopped working.  I got it on sale at Target and with a Team Member discount + Red Card discount, it was a decent deal.

In any case, I've been having problems with the Corsair mouse since I started playing Genshin Impact.  The more intense the battles, the less it responded.  Then, last night, the left mouse button collapsed and broke.  I got out my trusty Trackman Marble and continued.

I had just ordered another mouse from Newegg--an ASUS ROG Strix Impact III mouse that wasn't expensive.  Obviously, it was going to take longer than I had. This morning, I walked to Walmart to pick up a SteelSeries Rival 3.

The Rival 3 is a decent mouse with a big light show.  It's small and light and the grip is good.  It's not only compatible with the Windows machine but with the Mac.  If I ever get a desktop setup for my Steam Deck, it might go well with that, also.  The price is right.

I can't imagine that I'd be happy spending $159.99 again and finding that my mouse was broken.   I'm sure that the expensive kind break, even if they do it less frequently.  The e-gamers certainly don't have to worry too much about spending that money once they're well known, right?

In any case, I'm back in business.  I need to remove the iCue software.  I already had the Steelseries software for one of their wireless game controllers, so it was easy to switch.  Hopefully, the Rival 3 can stand up to Genshin Impact's impact.

Update 2023.10.23: The ASUS mouse arrived and it's quite good, except that there is no application for settings.  The DPI setting uses a control on the underside of the mouse.

Update 2024.05.02: I downloaded ASUS Armoury Crate.  That has customization for the mouse.  I connected the Rival 3 to the MacBook Air, which already had SteelSeries software running for my wireless controller, the Nimbus+.  Both mice have been excellent.  Occasionally, I've had trouble with macOS Sonoma not seeing the mouse as a mouse but it's a rare occurrence.

Obviously, I don't have any eSports tournaments to win, so inexpensive mice are fine.  I also have a very large mouse pad that goes from the Mac to the Windows machine.

Since Android 14, my Pixel 6a is suddenly unusable Update: slightly better

 Apparently, Google didn't test Android 14 very well on Pixel 6a, Pixel 6, or Pixel 6 Pro.

There is a problem with multiple users on the operating system on those devices.

After a few days of Android 14, it has decided that my data is corrupt and has pushed me to do a Factory Data Reset.  Otherwise, I'm stuck watching "Pixel is starting..." forever.

Since I've been using this phone, it's been one problem after another.  The developers really didn't consider that people would use the phones because it hasn't been as smooth as other Android distributions.

Even as chaotic as OnePlus was with their Oppo-inspired mix, it was made for users.  I suppose I should just go back to my OnePlus 8T, as it was faster, smoother, and a better experience altogether.

I'm seriously disappointed that Google isn't as good as smaller companies in developing Android-based devices.

Well, I did the Factory Data Reset and started fresh.  I've got one user account and very few apps.  It's going to be a very long time until I trust it again.  Sadly, some of my data is gone forever.

I won't buy another piece of hardware from Google.  This Pixel 6a is the last, after two iterations of the Nexus 7 tablets.  One of those (with the Nvidia Tegra) was such a disaster that I returned it immediately.

I've been fighting with the Pixel 6a ever since I got it.  At US$299.99 - 10% Target team member discount - 5% Red Card discount, it was an easy choice.  However, my luck with Android has been just okay.  I didn't figure that Google's own Android release would finish off my data. 

Update 2023.10.22: Asphalt 9, which was working on Android 14 is no longer working.  It just hangs.  Oh, never mind.  It starts after a few minutes.  That's not as fast as when it started in a few seconds.  Way to go, Google!

Update 2023.11.16: I added my other account, feeling a bit more cautious, as it might be labeled corrupt and cause everything to be wiped again.

Mostly, it's fine.  Asphalt 9 was running just fine, but days later, it isn't.  Something seems seriously wrong with Android 14, or maybe, it's just Google's phone team's implementation.  I really haven't done much with the phone, as I'm not quite ready to invest time on something that may never work correctly again.

Update 2023.12.06: Android update for security apparently had more in it than something like 37 security fixes.  Asphalt 9 is running again.  Hopefully, it will stay that way.  I wanted to transfer music back to the phone but the Files app is irritatingly difficult.  It could be worse, to be certain.  It found my USB drive after a while.  There isn't as much music as there is free space but it claims that there isn't room available.  It won't transfer some of it and it's a pain to transfer folder by folder.

Maybe, their new AI can figure out how people actually use phones and computers and they can use it to generate applications that actually work for people.

Google, you damaged the trust I had that the phone would work.  You destroyed what I had and, while I continue to try to use it, there is no way I will spend more money on hardware from Google.  It isn't in my best interest.

Update 2024.02.01: I let my phone plan finish.  Since I have a 2022 iPhone SE that's my regular phone, I only had a cheap plan to try Android.  Google has shown me that they don't care and I'm not about to spend money on such a phone.

The interesting thing is that, without a 5G connection, moving from my usual spot that is a floor above the router, causes the phone not to be able to access the internet at all.  Even if it's only a few feet (a meter or two), the phone can't find an internet connection.  Isn't that pathetic?

Update 2024.02.22: I almost bought a OnePlus 12R.  It's quite a good phone with a recent processor and multiple cameras and sensors.  My credit union signaled a fraud alert, which gave me a second chance to think about it.  I doubt that it works with my Razer Kishi V2, although the Razer web site finally mentions that the OnePlus 8 Pro doesn't work with it, and I had the 8T.  Would I buy the Razer Edge, which is guaranteed to work with the Razer Kishi V2 Pro and just let my Pixel 6a and Razer Kishi V2 sit, abandoned?

Update 2024.06.23: I've been looking at the Razer Edge again, since Newegg has it for US$299.00 and I can pay $76 something four times.  I'm sorry that I bought this Google Pixel 6a so much that I will never buy another Google product.  I'm doubtful that Google cares how much anyone likes their products, as long as they continue to buy them.

If they went back to being an internet search-only company, would the world care?

Genshin Impact, from AR 6 to AR 40 in a few months, without money

 I tried Genshin Impact when it was a few months old.  People at work had been playing and I was interesting in trying it.  I was terrible at it.  I was determined not to spend money--something that my co-workers were doing--and I didn't go far.  When Honkai: Star Rail became available, I was still at AR 6 in Genshin Impact.  That's a long time.

After playing Honkai: Star Rail for a while, and getting my characters up to high levels (many are at level 80 now), I started to play with Genshin Impact while I was bored waiting for the energy to be recharged in HSR.  With level 80 characters and at game level 60+, it takes a long time to level up characters.

Now, in Genshin Impact, I'm up to AR 35 and my main character, in both accounts, is at level 60.  I need to finish the Dvalin/Stormterror quest to go further and reveal many opportunities.  I've made decent progress or I wouldn't be at AR 35, but there is much to experience.  I haven't made it to the peak of Dragonspire and I haven't be allowed to see Inazuma, although the occasionally talk about it.

I've finally got a 5-star character on both accounts: Dehya.  So far, the 4-star characters seem more reliable, but all characters seem to have incredible weakness and they fail at the wrong time.  Most weapons are 3-star varieties with lots of duplicates, so using the Refine function helps.  I've unlocked the weapons upgrade materials sites, so it's easier to do that.  Upgrading the characters is another matter.  How do you upgrade a character that isn't strong enough to fight for the materials it needs?

Well, just having made it to AR 35, I have that ascension challenge happening.  I need to get the other characters up a few levels.  However, the things I need to accomplish don't seem possible.  I guess all I can do is be patient, upgrade artifacts and weapons and keep trying.  The ascension challenge wants all characters at level 60.  The other characters are at level 40 right now, except for Dehya, who is at level 60 on one account and level 50 on the other.  Her materials are much easier to get.  I need two others at level 60, though.  My main character is now at level 70 on both accounts.

 The mechanisms in Honkai: Star Rail seem to be almost the same as Genshin Impact.  It's just in the presentation where they differ.  The fighting style is the biggest difference, of course.

Update 2023.10.09: It took a while to make it past the Ascension challenge.  One account worked quickly, but the other struggled and I finally got a team with a characters at levels 70, 50, 40, and 60 to work.  It took so long that the second account went directly from AR 35 to AR 39.  The first account to succeed went from AR 35 to AR 37 but they're both nearing AR 40 right now.

Upgrading weapons works, but upgrading 4-star weapons is more difficult, of course.  My trouble is that I have characters from Inazuma, which is not open to me yet.  You can't upgrade characters with unavailable items.

Still, I haven't spent any money on the game.  My frustration level may not be any higher than those spending money, though.

Update 2023.10.11: Make that AR 40, on both accounts.  I still have much to learn.  I really wish I had 4-star weapons on both accounts.  The mix of 4-star characters is good enough.  The Dehya character has been extremely useful, even though most rankings I've seen are not positive.  Keqing should be interesting, once I can move her past level 20.  I ended up having to use Noelle with a strong weapon to get past AR 35 on the lagging account.  My previous experience was that the character was not useful but she was enough to handle the situation to upgrade Kaeya, and will be needed again.

Update 2024.03.08: Up to AR 42, but not really making progress.  My main character is at level 80 on both accounts and the weapon is at level 70 on one and close to that on the other account.  It's interesting to have the same characters on both accounts and frustrating not to have certain characters on both.

I got into the new area with this latest release, but I still have early quests with the Adepti to finish in order to progress.  At least, I got to see the Lantern Festival around Lunar New Year.  That was the main reason I started Genshin Impact years ago.

Update 2024.09.04: At AR 43 this week, after having trouble with the battle when entering Natlan.  I've lost interest after finding some of the puzzles and battles too difficult.

Trial of the Equilibrium: Part Six

On one account, I'm at level 65, which means I have to face the Trial of the Equilibrium again.  This time, the characters are at level 80.  I had the Main Character, March 7th, Bailu, and Welt Yang.  I still have Traces to finish but 7/10 isn't bad.

Well, it took a few minutes.  Always, remember the personal shield, Cosmic Fried Rice, and an energy drink or something to help your DEF.

The other account might struggle more, but it's been good in the past.  I may wish to strengthen the Traces more than 7/10.

The new version struggle with the assassins went quickly.  Jing Yuan and Imbibitor Lunae were good, even though they were at level 78, which is lower than my own characters and in the one case, I only selected three characters for the team.

 I'm sure that you can appreciate that I haven't spent any real money on playing the game.  It's taken a lot of patience and planning to get to this point without paying for anything.  I'm not paying anything to play Genshin Impact, and it's certainly difficult to get even 4-star characters there.

Update 2023.09.05: How did everyone do with their free pulls?  On one account, I got an extra Himeko and an extra Yukong.  This is especially important because Yukong is my only Imaginary character on that account.  The other got an extra Herta and a Yukong-specific Light Cone, Past and Future.  Eidolons are good.  Both are getting an extra Sushang because of the Aurum Alley event.

With both accounts into level 65, I wonder what else will happen as I complete characters.

Update 2023.09.12: I've been completing every character I can.  I've been working the Aurum Alley event, as well.  Mostly, I'm waiting for Traiblaze power to be regenerated and credits to be enough.  I was playing the event with Bailu at Scalegorge Waterscape and I noticed level 85 characters afterwards.  When did that happen?

I've also been working on Genshin Impact again and I'm up to AR 32 on both accounts.  I see so many prerequisites and I'm not sure where they are.  I'm finding new temples for artifacts and weapon ascension materials lately.  I'm getting caught up in little side quests, but they might be exactly what I need to move further.  I have a feeling that I need to finish Dragonspire quests before I can find Inazuma.  I found Fontaine after dealing with the desert.  I don't suppose I can use the Waverunner and take it all the way to Liyue and on to Inazuma.  There always seems to be something in the way.

Honkai: Star Rail, Level 80 characters, Genshin Impact revival

 As I'm past the Trial of the Equilibrium: Part Five, I've been increasing my characters to maximum levels.  I've got four characters on each account at level 80.  It's been a while to achieve that.  I've got most of their Light Cones to level 80, as well.

Finishing the Traces has been difficult, due to Echo of War constraints.  Finding Eidolons will take time and much patience.

While I've been waiting, I've been messing with Genshin Impact again.  I was at level 6 for a year or two, but now, I'm at level 17 on one account and level 16 on the other.

Running around the beautiful landscape with a group of four has been interesting, especially when they aren't as powerful as their enemies.  I only have one four-star character on each account, with Rosaria on one, and Kuki Shinobu on the other.  Since I got to Adventurer level 15, I was able to level up the characters to near level 40.  That has greatly increased their chances of winning.  Stamina is always a problem, and the characters seem to want to climb anything, as if they're trying to commit suicide by lack of stamina.

I've thankful that I have two accounts.  I have different experiences in Genshin Impact, and that leads to greater success for both, eventually.

The next few months of both games should be interesting.  Version 4.0 of Genshin Impact will arrive soon but I'm still not at a level where I would notice.  It feels as though the training wheels will be gone soon, though.  By the time Honkai: Star Rail reaches version 4.0, I should have all of my characters at maximum.

Update 2023.08.13: The Genshin Impact training wheels are gone at Adventure Rank 20 on both accounts.  It feels as though Spiral Abyss is the Simulated Universe from HSR.

Update 2023.08.17: Is it strange that I've barely accomplished anything in Genshin Impact and I'm suddenly in the new area of Fontaine?  I'm up to AR 21 now.  I've recently been dealing with The Sign of Apaosha, which seems a bit advanced.  Still building characters on Honkai: Star Rail, at level 63.

Update 2023.08.22: I'm at AR 23 on both accounts in Genshin Impact and managed to cover quite a bit of territory and light up teleport sites.  On Honkai: Star Rail, I'm getting a couple more characters up toward level 80 and Traces are on the rise, as well.

Update 2023.08.27: I'm at AR 26 on one account and AR 25 on the other.  Midsummer Courtyard seems like Trial of the Equilibrium.  I finally went there after wondering why I had too many points for AR 25.  It wasn't easy, as there aren't really any instructions or directional indicators.  I didn't even know to go to the tree for the rewards and didn't get anything the first time.  Spiral Abyss is almost as confusing, but there is some indicator of what's happening.

On Honkai: Star Rail, I'm still working on building characters to their maximum levels.  This is taking time and resources.

Update 2023.08.31: On Genshin Impact, I've got enough points on the other account to be at AR 27, but I can't get pass the Midsummer Courtyard trial.  Apparently, I need better characters, better weapons, better artifacts.  I'm not sure how I did it on the other account.  Never mind, the Electro Hypostasis was a problem, but learning how to work against it helped.  I'm not sure how the other account accomplished this because I really don't remember that part at all.  Both accounts are at AR 27 now.

Honkai: Star Rail is all shiny and new.  Breezed through the challenges with trial Imbibitor Lunae at level 78.  On one account, I accidentally stopped adding characters and only had a group of 3, rather than 4.  They were all easy wins, though, with level 80 characters.  The Aurum Alley management tasks are annoying, moreso than the Belobog Museum tasks.

Update 2023.09.06: On Genshin Impact, both of my accounts are now at AR 30.  Things are looking more difficult again, as they seemed to be approaching AR 15.  Updating characters to level 50 is difficult with many of them.

Trial of the Equilibrium: Part Five

 I'm at level 60, which means I have to face the Trial of the Equilibrium again.

Five star characters will be helpful, although not entirely necessary.  One account has Yanqing, Bailu, Bronya, and Gepard, while the other has Himeko, Seele, and Clara.  I just received Welt Yang on the account with Bailu.  After seeing what this character can do in a tryout, I have interest in seeing how he faces difficult enemies.  Getting him to level 70, along with his 5-star Light Cone, is taking some time.

On the account that doesn't have Bailu, I received her 5-star Light Cone and it is giving Natasha much-needed endurance.  That also took some time to get to almost level 70.

Previously, I mentioned upgrading Traces with the Echo of War environments.  You can make some important changes by finishing some of these enhancements--more DEF, more ATK, more HP.

 It's finished

 I tried one account and then, the other.  Both were finished in just a few minutes.

I had Qingque, March 7th. Bailu, and Dan Heng on one team.  That's the account that also has Yanqing, Welt Yang, Bronya, and Gepard.  I wanted to see how Welt Yang did in the Trial, but he wasn't necessary.  I'm surprised that everyone did so well.  However,  there must have been some mistake on the rewards, as nothing much appeared.

The other account had Dan Heng, Natasha, Clara, and Seele.  That account also has Himeko, which I was finishing upgrading.  I considered using my main character, which is on the path of Preservation, rather than Destruction.  He doesn't have many Eidolons, but he is powerful.

Well, I'm ready to Ascend my main character on the way to level 80.  They want 180,000 credits for the character and 200,000 credits for the Light Cone, which might take a while to finish four to six characters.  Is there life beyond level 80 yet?

Update 2023.07.19: Updated to version 1.2, On one account, I've got the main character (Preservation) up to level 80, but his Light Cone is only at level 71.  On the other account, I have longer to go, as I was trying to get Welt Yang to level 70, as well as getting my main character (Destruction) to level 80.

The account with the Preservation main character has completed the mission with Phantylia, The Ascended, etc.  After completing a new Forgotten Hall, I got the 4-star character Yukong.  Since characters that can create Imaginary Damage are few, this is good.  However, during the episode, the main character reverted from Preservation to Destruction, which was surprising but was during a battle.

Both accounts are through the battle with Phantylia.  That's amazing without any level 80 character. Still haven't spent any real money.

Apple Silicon Software Development seems slow

It's been about three years since the initial M1-based machines from Apple became reality.  Why is development lagging?

Steam Hardware Survey

The other day, Steam requested my computer's details.  One is an AMD Ryzen 7 with Geforce RTX 3050 Ti (laptop version, of course), and the other is a 2020 MacBook Air M1.  In reporting, Steam shows AppleVirtual processor and 1440x900 resolution, which is far from the truth, unless of course, you don't care to make your software the best and take advantage of the actual power that is available.

I've only had my 2020 M1 MacBook Air for about a year, but it seems as though most applications are only compatible through emulation.

I could understand why Adobe wouldn't be quick about it.  They were dragging their feet on the way to Mac OS X in 2000.  They wouldn't port Premier Pro, and Apple brought out Final Cut and Aperture.

Intuit was also complaining, but then, they wanted us to move to Windows because they told people "the Mac is just too difficult to program" or some such, used to justify the higher price and lower functionality.

What got me over the years was that Microsoft was Apple's enemy and yet, their software was better for Mac OS X than that of Adobe, Apple's friend.

It's 2023, not 2003

It still feels as though little has been accomplished since the M1 and other Apple Silicon processors have been available.  The performance is so good that you might not notice the speed of Intel emulation.  Mouse cursor positioning doesn't seem all that stable, though, as of macOS 12.x.

It's been almost three years and I would expect that developers would want to show what their applications could do on better hardware.

Valve Software might not be doing as well as they want people to believe, but I suspect that they could buy a couple of M1-based Macs and update Steam for Apple Silicon.  If that worked out, they could re-jig Source to 64-bit compatibility, as well as Metal compatibility.  Apple might even help them, just to get more games on M1 Macs.  I should note the rumor that Valve and Apple talked about making Proton work on Macs and Apple refused.  Whether it happened or not, things need to be better than running Windows executables on another operating system.  Steam Deck with Proton works but it's not always wonderful.

It really wouldn't hurt Apple to create a division for games and keep it to help third parties develop outstanding games.  A couple of games I had for Windows are available in Apple Arcade but unavailable elsewhere.

It's interesting that Evernote is a Universal binary, but Dropbox is Intel-only.  Google Drive is listed as Apple Silicon, not Universal.  LastPass is Intel-only, but thankfully, Malwarebytes is Universal.

Serif's Affinity applications are Universal, but it seems a number of creative applications are not.  I'm thankful for Capture One Pro being Universal, as well as Affinity Publisher, Designer, and Photo.

How many years until Intel is completely gone from Apple machines?  When Apple pulls the plug on Rosetta 2 will they step up or step away?

Update 2024.07.29: I just updated to macOS 14.6, a Sonoma release.  I got an update for Steam, but I 99% know that it's Intel-only.  I checked updates on GOG Galaxy some 20 minutes ago and I'm waiting for it to finish.  That's perplexing since the Windows version updated a few days ago and I didn't have to check.  It told me.  It's time for the Heroic games launcher.

Electronic Arts finally got around to retiring Origin for the EA launcher, which is Universal.  Most of my games are still Intel-targeted.  Death Stranding is Apple Silicon only and is not available on Steam yet.  Divinity - Original Sin 2 is Intel only.

I've been reminded in some forums that there are 200+ Mac games.  I've also been reminded that you can use Whisky with the Heroic launcher to play some Windows-only games.  There are a few well-known games coming to Mac, including a new Assassins Creed (Shadows?) game.  I have a few of them but Ubisoft hasn't made a game I've loved since the original Rayman on Atari Jaguar.

Of course, it's not all about games, but they are essential to home users.

Update 2024.08.16: Now that the Qualcomm ARM-based machines using a Nuvia-developed SoC have been released, it should be interesting to see if there will be ARM-based games on Windows.  Apparently, the Windows' equivalent to Rosetta 2 is not so amazing.

Perhaps, if game developers start to design games for ARM on the desktop, they'll be able to target Macs as well as Windows machines.  Considering that the M1-based machines arrived in 2020, it's a bit frustrating waiting for something to happen.

I've downloaded Whisky and the Heroic Games Launcher but I haven't tried much, as I am not restricted to macOS, having a Windows 11 machine and a Steam Deck.  I need to focus.  I probably need more than my 1 TB drive and it might make sense to have a big, external drive for my Windows-based games for Mac since I have 230+ games on Steam alone and only a few are native to Mac.

Update 2024.09.02: I was just taking a look at the Steam hardware survey results.  macOS is around 1.3% of the total.  Is that surprising when Valve went out of its way to kill Counter Strike that was working and develop Counter Strike 2 with no executable for Macs?  All of their 32-bit executables from 2010 (?) still work on older machines but unless Rosetta 2 will run them, what's the point?

Why Apple and Valve couldn't even reach a compromise sends a message that isn't necessarily true.  Mac gaming isn't exactly alive but it's not dead, either.  However, the late 1990s were much better than now.

I tried Heroic Games launcher and downloaded a game that I know runs on Apple Arcade and it was fine on Mac.  I've been a bit slow to download much else because of the storage required.  I tried one of the Resident Evil games, which is native for Apple Silicon, and that was surprisingly good on an M1 MacBook Air.  If they have the RE Engine converted, they should be able to port to the whole series.

Unreal Engine 5 runs on macOS but it's the headlines about how bad its performance is on Windows that got my attention.  Trying new technologies is difficult but bringing a gaming system to a crawl is not good--just ask the Starfield people.

Honkai: Star Rail, 2 months later

 Did you think that you would get so far?  Did you find the right combination to get what you wanted?

I have a co-worker, who is at a low level, asking me again if I got Silver Wolf.  I haven't.  I don't believe that I need her.  (I now have Welt, and his 5-star Light Cone, on one account!)

I've learnt plenty about my characters and in the Trial of Equilibrium, Part Four, I found that two 4-star characters work just fine.  Properly fitted, a 5-star character can do better, but that isn't necessary.  Bailu can revive "the dead", unlike Natasha, but Natasha has done just fine where I didn't have Bailu.  (However, I have a 5-star Light Cone that I want Natasha to use, but I don't have another Abundance character to host it until it's at maximum level. Having two doctors on the other account works wonders.)

Finding the right combination for a character is important.  After Trial of the Equilibrium, Part Four, I removed the relics of all important characters and used recommended sets.  This provided a much bigger upswing in the statistics than guessing which ones would work well.

As well, I found two 5-star Light Cones for the main character in Herta's Store.  This not only makes a difference for the main character, but allows another character to use a powerful Light Cone.  Destruction Light Cones have been in short supply for me.  On the other account where I switched the main character to Preservation, this still helped to bring March 7th up a notch.

I've chosen to raise the level of Qingque just after the main character, because of the Quantum damage.  This has resulted in easier victories against Arumaton Gatekeepers.

Getting supplies to push characters to level 70 is difficult.  I need loads of credits and loads of materials for the Synthesizer.  This will take time.  I can only imagine that pushing them to level 80 will be almost impossible and require loads of time.  Still, I'm not paying real money.

Update 2023.07.09: This really is taking time.  I find the materials to update a Light Cone on one character and run out of money.  Then, I can't seem to get enough Trailblaze power to complete Calyx runs.  Version 1.2 is arriving shortly.  I guess it won't be much different, since I'm already everywhere, trying to accomplish everything.

Those Traces on the edges need to be in use.  You need to complete Echo of War battles to complete the two that are keeping those from being used.

Complete the two toward the bottom and work your way up each line to increase abilities.

Honkai: Star Rail, One Month Later

Isn't it amazing how far we've come since May 1st?

I had no real clue what this game would be but I knew that I had no luck with Genshin Impact and would try anyway.  I didn't want to spend real money.  That would probably limit things more than I would hope.

I have two accounts.  I started one on May 1st and hit a road block quickly, and I used another account that was also connected to Genshin Impact.

One account has Yanqing, Bailu, Bronya, and Gepard, while the other has Himeko, Seele, and Clara.  It's good to have such characters for the sake of progress.  The set of four have been able to take on level 53 characters and win.

 I've seen some lists that say some of the characters I have aren't the best.  Still, they're 5-star characters and are more capable than 4-star characters, in general.  It's odd to think that I have all of these characters at level 50 or more.  They'll be at level 60 within a day or two.  I noticed the Aptitude Showcase has characters at level 80.

Yanqing seems to do most of the work for Bronya, while she increases damage potential.  Bailu is a more versatile doctor than Natasha but either will do.  Gepard, being a Preservation character is an interesting mix of attacking enemies and keeping allies safe.

Himeko is useful but falls too easily, similar to Serval.  They can both deal a lot of damage but they'll be out of the battle sooner than others.  Seele is holy-shit amazing but she leaves the battle too quickly.  Clara is a strange mix of her and Mister Svarog.

IMHO, some of the characters like Dan Heng are much more than 4-star characters and some of the 5-star characters aren't as good as they could be.  I guess that they can't have 4.5-star characters, though.  It's interesting to use Dan Heng and Yanqing on the same team.  Much more is accomplished quickly.

There are so many little things to do to make these characters do their best.  Changing things once you think it's finished is difficult, but it works in the end.  I've switched Light Cones at fairly critical times simply because a 5-star Light Cone arrived.

The good thing in all of this is that I'm not spending money and I'm giving Honkai: Star Rail the attention it needs without making it an obsession.  I've seen loads of people spend hundreds of dollars on Genshin Impact.  I wouldn't, which is partly why I'm only at level 8 and you have to be at level 15 for anything interesting to happen.  On Honkai: Star Rail, one account is at Trailblaze level 44 and the other is at level 42.  That's pretty good, especially since no real money has been involved.

Of course, you need to get your character's level and Light Cone level as high as possible, but make sure all Traces are complete and buy 4-star Relics when possible.  Switch when necessary.  You can always build them on one character and switch them later.  Enhancing Relics is something I haven't found straightfoward.

Update 2023.06.13: Most of the 5-star characters are at level 60 and many 4-star characters are at level 60, as well.  I'm working on finishing traces for level 60.  The account with Himeko is at level 45 and is facing the Ebon Deer, without much success so far.  I've removed Himeko for the moment, as she isn't effective.  Qingque is probably more important, given the Quantum DMG, along with Seele.

Special Rail Passes did not get me a new character but Serval on each side, turning into an Eidolon, which boosted her.

Update 2023.06.16: Still feel the need for one Abundance character and one Preservation character to keep the team going.  Attempting to upgrade March 7th on the account that doesn't have Gepard.

Trial of the Equilibrium, Part Four is upon me, on one account.  One is at level 50, and the other is at level 48.  Most important characters are at level 60.  Is that enough?  I have no choice.  They can't be upgraded until the test is complete.  What combination will work?  Quantum DMG is probably a wise option, but Qingque is a four-star character and isn't strong.  Then again, Seele, on the other account, is a 5-star character who falls too easily.

Update 2023.06.18: Arumaton (Gatekeeper) is in the fourth Trial of the Equilibrium and is a pain, defeating every team quickly.  I finally finished one of the other missions where an Arumaton was involved.  Of course, it wasn't level 60 and the one in the trial is at level 60.

I've upgraded Herta on both accounts.  She and Qingque make it difficult for the Arumaton.

Update 2023.06.20: Both of my accounts are at level 50.  I continue to receive the "relic levels are low" message but I can't go get better relics because I get the "underpowered" message when I try Cavern of Corrosion or other bits where I could receive better relics.

Oh, and on the account with fewer 5-star characters, I changed the main character to Preservation.  This means that the character uses fire and needs to have his Light Cone replaced with one from Preservation.  It also means that all of the Eidolons that were already there (all six) did not apply.  I wonder if they're waiting, so if I switch the character back to Destruction, they'll be there.  He's weaker and stronger, at the same time.

Update 2023.06.25: Trail of Equilibrium, Part 4 has been succeeded on both accounts.  This took a lot of relic enhancing, a Kinetic Cannon, some Cosmic Fried Rice, and a disposable shield.  Accounts are at level 53 and level 52.

Honkai: Star Rail, without real money

I've been playing Honkai: Star Rail since it was available, a few weeks.  One account is at level 33 and the other is at level 32.  I haven't spent any real money to get them there.

Unfortunately, my experience with the Trial of the Equilibrium on the earlier one hadn't given me an easier path on the other.  Having a 5-star character hasn't been an overwhelming advantage, either.  Get your powerful Light Cones early and get them enhancements.  You can begin with 3-star Light Cones but once you have them where you want them and realize that they're not as powerful as you had hoped, you'll be want better.  This is likely the way they get people to pay real money--frustration.  Genshin Impact is the same way.

There are a lot of ways to build the characters you need, so that you can switch between them.  The Calyx challenges have been extremely helpful in returning valuable resources for raising team members.  The only cost has been internal to the game.  You must be patient or pay greatly.

That Trial of Equilibrium is a pain.  I tried various characters, including one 5-star character, but the combination hadn't been enough.  The good thing is that any Trailblazer experience you earn isn't limited just because you haven't passed the Trial of Equilibrium.  Eventually, I passed both of them and when the second Trial arrived, it was much easier.

I finished Jarilo VI with a lot of effort, some frustration, and some inspiration.  I continue to handle missions on the space station and Jarilo VI.

What's surprising is that I was inspired during combat by Epic Games' Battle Breakers.  Those characters didn't move from their spots, but knowing how to assign characters, to balance abilities, was helpful.  I was over level 500 on Battle Breakers and wasn't one to spend money.

Honkai: Star Rail is so different from Genshin Impact that I can't imagine that they're from the same company.

During the first week, I saw reviews stating that the author was at level 50.  That must have taken a lot of money and time that I don't have to spend.  I believe that I will arrive there, but in the next month or two.  That's soon enough for me.

Update 2023.05.26: Version 1.1 arriving soon.  Highlights page already online.

Update 2023.06.01: Level 40 on one account, 38 on the other.  Trial of Equilibrium is once again a big issue.  I'm seeing a message about relics needing to be at a higher level.  Characters are at level 50 and Light Cones are also at level 50.  Except for relics, things are the best that they can be.

Update 2023.06.04: Level 42 on one account, 40 on the other.  I'm through the Trial of Equilibrium again.  I used three 5-star characters and one four-star character.  It wasn't easy, but I had to revive two characters after the battle with the Fridgid Prowler and bring up the HP on everyone.  Consumables are good for that.  I used Cosmic Fried Rice.  The other battle was somewhat easier.

I still haven't spent any real money, but it looks as though it's going to be a lot more difficult without it.  The future seems to be relics-related.

Warning: If you don't go into Stagnant Shadow and get supplies before Trailblaze level 40, you might not be able to do it at all.  I keep seeing "Team is too underpowered message", even though I have three 5-star characters and all four characters are at level 50.  You can set the difficult level lower, but your rewards won't be as good, and will take more tries to win.

Update 2023.06.06: There are about 5.5 hours until the new version will be available.  I'm not sure it will make a difference but hopefully, bugs will be fixed and things will work more smoothly.

The Simulated Universe is up to level 58 characters, so I'm unable to play it too far, as most of my characters are level 50.  I've got two characters on each account ascended, on their way to level 60.

It's interesting that I have so many 5-star characters when I see videos of people giving tips that don't have as much as I do.

One account has Yanqing, Bailu, Bronya, and Gepard, while the other has Himeko, Seele, and Clara.  It's good to have such characters for the sake of progress.  The set of four have been able to take on level 53 characters and win.

Tried the game on a Google Pixel 6a, which was miserable and an Apple 2022 iPhone SE, which was acceptable, but still not great.  They've got issues to smooth out.  My Windows laptop computer with 16 GB of RAM and Nvidia RTX 3050Ti works fine, though, producing a lot of hot air. 

Update 2023.06.25: Trial of Equilibrium: Part 4 has been succeeded on both accounts.  This took a lot of relic enhancing, a Kinetic Cannon, some Cosmic Fried Rice, and a disposable shield.  Accounts are at level 53 and level 52.

Update 2023.07.30: I've surpassed the Trial of Equilibrium: Part Five and it was easier than expected.  I have at least one character at level 80 on each account and a few others close to that.  I'm filling every slot possible, and it's taking time but I'm doing it without using any real money.  Trailblaze level 62 doesn't really look any different from the lower levels, but it isn't easy to finish characters at this level.  Tasks are simpler, due to familiarity with the environments and characters' abilities.

All this has given me time to try Genshin Impact again.  One account is at level 13, and the other is at level 9.  Prior to playing Honkai: Star Rail, I was stuck at Adventurer level 6 in Genshin Impact.

Switching from a OnePlus 8T to a Google Pixel 6a: What could go wrong?

 Now that the 8T is approximately 3 major versions behind, I wondered if it was time to switch.  I also recently bought a Razer Kishi V2, which for some reasons, doesn't work with it.  Android version 12 seems good but I wonder what kind of a mess the OnePlus/Oppo combination has made.  Things just don't seem quite right.  What better way to get a clear version of Android than from Google.

My last Google-labeled device was the 2013 ASUS-made Nexus 7 tablet with a Snapdragon S4 Pro.  It didn't seem to work very well with Android, but it worked well enough to play games.  It was much better than the previous year's version made by Nvidia.  However, even version 6 of Android just didn't work well and I gave it away.

I've spent time with Android 9, 10, 11, and 12.  They are better than previous versions.

Related to the Razer Kishi V2, there was a deal on the Google Pixel 6a for US$299.99, down from $449.99.  That's a good price for an unlocked phone.  It's slightly less than the US$399.99 I paid for the OnePlus 8T, but that had 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage.  The Pixel 6a has 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.  Both have an OLED display but the 6a is limited to 60Hz while the 8T goes to 120Hz.  The Google Tensor SoC isn't all that different than the Snapdragon 865, but in all reality, the 8T is a flagship device and the 6a isn't.

Conversion

I charged the 6a and when I turned it on, the instructions asked if I wanted to switch from another phone.  As instructed, I plugged a USB, type-C cable into each phone.  The 6a couldn't see the 8T.  I wasn't surprised.  Sometimes, it's difficult to get the phone to charge.  I connected them wirelessly and that seemed to work.

After some time, it finished.  I wondered how it did a complete backup so quickly.  It didn't do a complete backup.  That's how.

It sent the list of apps, contacts, and more.  The apps were being downloaded immediately, but that took quite a while.  Apparently, the data was not always available.  A few Android apps still cling to Facebook and other methods of storing progress, while Google is clearly available.

It took about a week to get things running the way I wanted, although I'm still not sure everything is where it should be.  The OnePlus 8T is empty now, though.

Thankfully, the 6a has a tiny, compatible SIM slot.  Mint Mobile is hard at work.  I've yet to test communications speeds.

On the other hand, game speeds seem decent.  Scrolling a game in landscape mode is jerky.  Animation is fine but that movement across the width of the display is pretty bad.  Is it the display or the graphics processor or the lack of RAM?

So far, the 6a seems okay for the job, and if it seems not good enough, I only have to remember my first Android smartphone: the LG Optimus S that was forever short on storage.  I had to delete apps to update the operating system.  That phone was US$299.99.

Real Life

Okay, so out in the real world, away from Comcast/Xfinity, it's okay for the internet connection.  I was concerned because I tried it close to work and got 3G-type speeds.  At home, I turned off the WiFi and it was faster than the XFinity connection.

What's a bit disappointing is that the display is dark in sunlight, even on cloudy days.  I turned it up to about 80% of maximum brightness and I could barely see the display.  The display on the 8T was readily visible.  Something else that hurts is that the system continues to drop the brightness level to around 30%, without asking.

The horizontal scrolling jerkiness has become less but is still noticeable.  I suspect that having half the storage and half the RAM isn't helping.  However, the 8T was reporting that 150+ GB of storage were in use, and since I don't have that much, I'm not sure how things are working or what extra the 8T was reporting as used.

Cases

Crave Dual Guard case recommended by Amazon is strong but slippery.  It's slipped off the desk and has slipped out of my hands.  I'm glad the case is tough.

Instead, two Spigen cases caught my attention:

Spigen Liquid Air Armor

Spigen Tough Armor

I have used the Tough Armor case for the OnePlus 8T and it was very good.  I've settled on the Liquid Air Armor case for now, as it is a slimmer case.  It doesn't have the kickstand but I rarely used the kickstand for the OnePlus 8T.

Still, I have to remove the case for the Razer Kishi V2.  It's possible that an adjustment to the pads on the controller will allow the case to be used on the controller.

Update 2024.07.15: Ordered a Razer Edge Wi-Fi model to replace the Pixel 6a.  It's been over a year with this awful phone and I just don't want to deal with the frustration any longer.  Newegg had a deal for US$100 off, putting the final price at about 66%.  The Snapdragon G3X should provide a much better experience.  Even the Snapdragon 865 was better than the Tensor 1st generation.

Google Play Games...on Windows?

 I looked at using the Android environment on Windows but didn't like the idea of using Amazon's store of games.

I recently got an invitation to use Google Play Games and the experience is very limited.

Since I have Windows 11 and virtualization is enabled, I only had to download the initial installer and download the application.  It was fairly quick but it looked like it had been cobbled together (even for a beta test release) and I suspected at one point that I'd accepted malware.

When finished, I logged into my games-playing Google account and proceeded to watch the instructions.  There isn't much more to tell.  Most of the games weren't something I would even think to play.  Considering that the previous countries were in Asia, it wasn't surprising that most of the games were popular there.  Are 100 games a good start?  Apparently, Google have to tweak things so that they run smoothly on Windows.

I guess it will take some time and they're probably wondering if this will be more successful than Stadia was.

Considering that I have a few iPhone games on my Mac, this should fill gaps on casual games on Windows, since Windows phone is dead.

Update 2023.04.02: I have downloaded Hades' Star and Eversoul.  Eversoul seems to be a Genshin Impact-type of game, but in Korean, and with big boobs.  Hades' Star seems to be an empire-building game that is annoying.  I'm sure that someone else will find it engaging.

I'm still not sure that it's going to make an impact with the current selection of games.  There are a number of games in my account that I would like to use on the computer, but they aren't available yet.

Update 2023.11.22: Once I finally got into Eversoul, I see that it is no more than a boob show, objectifying female characters at every turn.  It is less than it should be.  While many mobile RPG games have an unfortunate view of women, Eversoul doesn't even try to be a good game.

Lately, I've been trying Tower of God: New World.  I'm up to level 101 on that.  I spent a little money, but I probably would have made the same progress without it, just a few days later.

Grand Cross: Age of Titans has also caught my attention and they currently have a crossover even with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, the anime series.  I normally wouldn't play this kind of game, but it's from Netmarble, just as Tower of God: New World is.  It takes a rather long time for things to happen and beware what happens when you're not on the game.  It may seem to be a single-player game, but you co-exist with many in the same general area and they might attack without provocation.  I'm a bit tired of the building and character upgrades.

That said, I'm still playing Genshin Impact outside of Google Play Games.  At level 41, I've put some effort into it, and even destroyed my Corsair M55 Pro mouse button.  They've compared the game to Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and I can only say that there is so much to see and do that I can't imagine that you can play the game for free.

Update 2023.12.29: I've been playing Netmarble games more lately, including Seven Knights II, which doesn't run on Google Play Games on Windows.  I'm at a point where I don't seem to be able to progress.  I'm not even sure that spending money will help me progress.  In all three of the games, I have plenty of characters and many of them are powerful, but not powerful enough.  Perhaps, I need more knowledge in enhancing equipment.

I picked up Sword Chronicles: Awaken and Black Clover.  These are on Android and iOS, as well, but not on Google Play Games on Windows.  Google has increased the number of games available on Windows but it's not yet impressive.  A lot of them are still money grabbers.

I've played Sword Chronicles: Awaken for a few weeks and it's confusing.  There is a social element, where you get to know your characters.  In other games, you merely buy them gifts, but this one has you playing games, being asked questions, eating with them, and sharing the hot springs with them.  Battles are fairly simple and can be placed on automatic.

Black Clover is an adaptation of a Shonen Jump series.  It's something I've not read or seen.  Then again, I haven't seen Shonen Jump since the first few issues.  There are so many opportunities to explore and battle that it's a bit overwhelming and confusing.  If you like anime, you'll appreciate what they've done with the characters.  I've made quite a bit of progress in a few hours, but I'm not completely sure how.  I'm not far into the game, but I'm seeing the limitations of the SR characters quickly, as I've topped out a few of them at level 40.  You can rank them up when you have materials but earning the materials is a battle, and remembering where to earn them is also a battle.

Update 2024.06.29: Google Play Games isn't getting better.  However, Tower of God: New World crashes on my Google Pixel 6a and only gets close on Google Play Games.  It's one game that I hoped Netmarble would put on Windows.

I've been playing Seven Knights II on Windows for a while.  Since the company has a launcher for its games now, I signed up for Solo Leveling: Arise.  I recently added Grand Cross: Age of Titans, which I've been playing on Google Play Games (when it works) and on the Pixel 6a.

It is so much better as a Windows application.  The Netmarble launcher takes very little RAM in contrast to Google Play Games that takes over 25% of my 16 GB.

The good thing is that I've stopped trying other games on Google Play Games.  I didn't even start it today.  Of course, on Android, it crashed visually during a big battle, but it apparently did the rest to finish what it was doing.  I canceled and re-launched and it showed progress.  If it sounds as though I don't like Google, I don't.  They're past all the extra chances.

That Razer Edge is looking really good right now.

Update 2024.07.15: Ordered the Razer Edge.

Update 2024.09.30: I've had the Razer Edge for a while now.  I did a Factory Restore on the Pixel 6a after the Razer copy copied part of my primary Android/Google account.  Of course, it didn't copy most of the music because that was difficult.  I reactivated my early Google account on the Pixel 6a.  Android on Windows?  It's gone.  The Razer Edge handles most of the graphics pretty well.  The G3X SoC seems to be the Snapdragon 888 with a better GPU section.  I could probably use it to cook when it warms up.  Unfortunately, the Razer Edge is stuck at Android 12 and the Pixel 6a will probably get Android 15 too soon.