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I've been playing (and sort of enjoying) WW2 and Battlefront was the first PS4 game that I played and I had a good time with that, so I'm happy with this months games.

With the recent PS+ release, I've given Call of Duty: WW2 a go. It's definitely more Call of Duty and looks pretty rough if I'm honest, however, it's nice to play a very focused Campaign.

All this talk of Xenoblade Chronicles has me sorely tempted to re-download the game to my Wii U, but then I remember how horrific I found the side quest markers and that I'm stuck on a boss battle where I'm too weak to beat it and to lost to work out how to get better.

I finished Masters of War and in it's genre (historical fiction) it was good, though no Iggulden, Mantel etc good. I will pick up the next book(s) if I see them somewhere cheap, but I won't rush. I wanted to get back into the Uthred books again, so I'm going to re-read (I assume, I literally can't remember if I have, or haven't) the Empty Throne and start working my way through the series. I also grabbed a random book from my shelf called The Long Take, which in it's own description is a noir narrative written with the intensive and power of poetry. I've read the first 15 pages and it's been good so far, but will be 250 odd pages of poetry about a WW2 veteran with PTSD. Nothing like reading out of your comfort zone.

A bit more REmake this morning (online lecture which was a lot of talking, a lot less doing) and have acquired the shotgun, located the kerosene container and then after saving went on an exploration run and located the dog whistle and the lighter, so I'll replay that little bit later on and then go and grab a few items to throw in the item box. I've not used a guide/map so far, but I think I probably will end up doing so, more to keep a tab on things that I've found so far. Update: As always happens with RE games, just popped it on again to have a bit more of a go and now Richard has been given the serum, I've got the Armour key and I'm just milling around opening up things.

I've owned a copy of Metroid Prime (with a few repurchases) since 2003 and still never completed the game. My current save on the Gamecube places me across a hall from the Freeze Beam and I almost feel guilty for not giving it my attention. In terms of gaming, I messed around with some PS Now and completed the first stage of Devil May Cry. I think that style of action game just isn't for me, unless it's been made by Platinum. I'm also in the middle of an online lecture at the moment and decided to trying out REmake for the first time in a few years (again on Gamecube). It holds up well, though on my television looks...not great. That said, I've just grabbed the Sword Key (so maybe 10 minutes of actual playing) and saved. It's funny, I don't find games that scary any more (more jumpy and then fun) but I must have some kind of hangover anxiety with this game from playing it when I was 13 and being scared shitless, because I have that vague 'worry' when playing the game. EDIT: One other thing about REmake, did anyone ever make a mod for the PC version (if the game supports them) that makes the map more in line with modern Resident Evil games - namely it details the items within a room, states which keys open which doors etc). Either way, emotionally preparing myself to test each door until I find one that works.

Beef with a slightly gamey aftertaste is my guess. Or fish, if the adage "you are what you eat" is true.

I've decided that the pre, pre-season fitness group that I run for my rugby club is starting today. So I came up with a 36 minute session to get that horrible blend of anaerobic fitness, aerobic recovery time and some little bits of strength thrown in. 10 minutes continuous jog 45-15's (work for 45s, rest for 15s - Push Ups, Plank, Squats, Mountain Climbers, Alternate Lunges) 2020's (20s 3/4 pace running, 20s rest x10) 45-15's (Burpees, High Knees, Close Arm Push Ups, Straight Leg Crunches, Plank) Pyramid (10m sprint and jog back to start, 20m sprint and jog back to start, up to 50m and back again) 4 minutes slow jog as recovery The next session on Wednesday will be a 5km run, but with each km split into different forms of aerobic exercise, but I need to plan that out properly first. I did the session, here's a review because why not. 1. Easy, I like running and this was a small one of those. 2. Easy, except for the Mountain Climbers which started to burn after about 30 seconds. 3. After about 5 these started to become horrendous, by the final two I sounded like I was dying, but my legs felt alright. 4. Easy, though I dropped my piece of paper with my exercises so I forgot about High Knees and substituted them with shoulder-tap press ups instead. 5. I thought I'd use the lamp posts in the park to measure my sets, which after two very confident sprints I realised were about 30m apart (not 10m). The 150m sprint was not fun, nor were the other 120m, 90m, 60m or 30m ones that came after it, still finished and I ran better than I thought I would. 6. This was a slow walk followed by a 4 minute very slow jog. I'm now home icing my legs and lying on the floor.

More a quick summary of the weekend: I played a bit more Horizon: Zero Dawn, just working my way through the side quests and story as they appear which is nice, though I can already sense that I'll want this game to be over before it is. ABZU - I appreciate what they were going for, but it just didn't have the impact that Journey had for me (although I only played for about 20 minutes) I also played some random bits on DS. Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story was fine, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon was also fine and Ace Attorney was also...fine.

I drifted through a few books (the danger of having a lot to access with Kindle) but have settled on Masters of War, which is pretty much like every other historical fiction that I've read, but I'm still enjoying it.

Now we have an end date for Supernatural, I'll actually get back to it and finish it off. I dropped off at some point (I can't remember when) but at least the first 6 series were some of my favourite things to watch on television.

It's been a good 12 years since I played it and I remember the game being...OK, but very repetitive.

For an outlier I remember being able to fly in Prototype being pretty wonderful

You earned that upvote.

There's a console mini people actually want.

I could see things like Horse, with online co-op being magic.

For 4-5 year old children, as this is their first year of being in school, I guess they want to return them back to the educational system so the gulf in their learning isn't significant (the following year, children are tested in Phonics and need to achieve a certain score to pass, or have to retake, and in turn the reported success of the school's teaching is seen as lower than desired). 5-6 year old children, as mentioned have to achieve targets in reading and word recognition and it's a big part of the data tracked in the UK. 10-11 year old children are in their transitional year from Primary School (ages 4-11) to secondary school (ages 11-16) and I guess they just want to ensure that they're not going to arrive with differing levels of ability (more so than usual). For the rest of the age groups, they are largely years where the learning is about consolidation (so reviewing and building on previously learned things) or can be picked up comfortably in the next year, whether in school or with more at home learning.

Nope, but in the UK it seems that the economy it more valuable than people not dying... Naturally though, I do hope the choices have been made with the welfare of the country the sole focus and that the UK will will return to some form of normality soon...

So the UK is encouraging those who can't work from home, to start work again tomorrow, allow the country to indulge in unlimited exercise as of Wednesday and (despite saying this would be dependent on this change working) sending children aged 4, 5, 6, 10 and 11 back to school by June. After working with children around that age for the last two years, I can't see them socially distancing in the slightest...so rather than a second peak in October in the UK, should we just prepare for it around July instead.

I'll most likely be dipping into Horizon: Zero Dawn and Crash Team Racing again, although I may have another flip through Playstation Now, which as I don't fancy any online gaming at the moment, is a better use of my pennies that PS+. I've also been watching some retro game reviews whilst doing some work and I may have a run through Rogue Leader on the Gamecube at some point. UPDATE: I ended up working at our allotment for three hours, going shopping, doing some cleaning, going to pick up a strimmer and then did a bit of cooking, thus none of this came to pass. Today, I worked from 8am - 12pm and now referencing for my assignment. After going back to actually use aforementioned strimmer, watching the UK Covid-19 updates and a bit more cleaning, that'll be today over. If I can get up soon enough tomorrow and get my house tidy for my lecture, I'll dig back into them all again.

Well that looked...fine. Though the main thing I want from the next generation of games is a reduction (or removal) of loading. Both initially and within the game as well...just seamless, non-intrusive and no performance fuck ups.

A bit more Horizon Zero Dawn and Crash Team Racing, which I need to spend some time with trying out different characters.

I wonder, with the incredible brand recognition that Nintendo has cultivated with the Switch, whether we'll see a new, separate console release in the future, or if they'll adopt the phone model of retaining the name, improving the hardware.

So in the UK despite not coming close to achieving their 5 tests before removing lockdown, which are: Test one: making sure the NHS can cope and continues to have sufficient capacity Test two: a ‘sustained and consistent’ fall in daily deaths Test three: solid data showing the rate of infection is decreasing to ‘manageable’ levels Test four: ensuring that supply of tests and personal protective equipment (PPE) can meet future demand Test five: avoiding a second peak that would risk overwhelming the NHS The general feeling is lockdown will be somewhat relaxed on Monday (make as many trips outdoors as you want, allowed to spend time in outside in public whilst socially distancing) and the consensus is also that they will look to re-open schools on the 1st of June in a limited capacity. I do appreciate the economy is dying a very quick death, mental health is suffering and a lot of people do want more freedome...but I wonder if we're going to have the caveat that Scotland proposed that isolation may be enacted again at very short notice. I still can't understand how with infection rates still going up, deaths slowing (but not stopping) and the fact we have no PPE in the UK, how a decision could be considered at the moment.

I feel a bit conflicted with this as I really enjoyed the whole series (including three) but I very much enjoyed them when they were released. With the changes in open world gaming, cover shooting, squad mechanics etc...will the games actually feel worth playing except for that warm, nostalgia feeling that comes from replaying something for the first time in years.