Impressions - March 2024
Impressions of the Month
So, I had a slower than expected month for the newsletter. This was due to many factors, including a change in my sleep schedule that took time to adjust to normal with my wife gone for a week. I’m hoping to pick up the pace in April, and we got a lot of exciting things coming for gamers and the newsletter.
PlayStation 5 Pro
The PS5 Pro had its specs leaked out. It sounds like crazy power on the GPU front but seems to lack power on the CPU side. There is a question of whether we even need a mid-gen upgrade. The leaps in generations have been getting weaker and weaker, 8K doesn’t seem to be the target and those TVs are still niche, and there’s a debate whether these specs can achieve a standard of 4K 60. I think this system will have an audience; they won’t be the mainstream consumer. I think Sony wants to sell this to extremely hardcore gamers and streamers.
Either way, a new system is always exciting, and if someone is okay with spending the money, I don’t have a problem with this being around. That being said, unless there is some breakthrough technology like AI mixing into graphics, I think this will only make the leap to PS6 look weak. But hey, all things change depending on perspective.
Epic Games Store on Mobile
Epic announced plans for a gaming-centric app store for iOS and Android. I’m all for more app stores, but I have to admit I don’t have the greatest favorable opinion of Epic. That being said, I think this is the first of many steps to having more true AAA gaming experiences potentially come to platforms outside consoles. With ARM gaming getting more and more support and Qualcomm trying to step up to Apple Silicon, I think gaming could finally get more interesting in devices like smartphones and tablets. But we are still a long way from that future.
What I’ve Been Playing and Watching
I’ve mainly been playing Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. I need to finish up Super Mario RPG Remake, but FF7 Rebirth has its hooks on me. I’m enjoying it, and it reminds me of why I love the original Final Fantasy VII so much. It does have some stuff I’m not crazy about, such as the mini-games, which I feel are forced. I also do not love Queen’s Blood to the level everyone else is, but that could be a skill issue (lol). The main things I love are the open-world stuff, the relationships you can have with separate characters, and I love that you can choose your romance options, as I always felt FF7 had a love triangle thing going on. I hope to finish it by next month’s impressions article for a quick review.
I also saw Dune Part Two in theaters. I didn’t hate the first movie, but I wasn’t wowed by it. The sequel is much better, but I still don’t understand the comparisons to all-time classic films. I thought it was a solid B+ movie, but not one I’m going to run out to see again. I did think the cinematography and some of the shots are its strong points; it's a better, prettier movie to look at.
I am also preparing for WrestleMania XL and watching the main events. I messed up and got lazy about it, so I had to rush and marathon-watch them. So far, though, it's going well, and I hope they’ll do the right thing and have Cody win at Mania this year.
Godzilla X Kong
Last but not least, for this month, I’m watching Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire a few days after publishing this article. For those who don’t know, I’m a HUGE Godzilla/kaiju fan. I have been a big supporter of the Monsterverse, and every time I get a new entry, it feels like how comic book fans probably felt when the MCU was at its peak. I’m expecting another solid entry, and if half the rumors are true, I think I’ll have a lot of fun with it.
I’ve gone back and watched some Godzilla and Kong films to prepare. Rewatching the original King Kong, Godzilla, and the Monsterverse films has been great. Maybe I’ll write a future article on the Side Vault about my love for kaiju films. I’m not dumb, I don’t expect giant box office numbers, as kaiju are still niche, but I hope it does well enough for at least one more film.