Well @enjar, I think I can spare an hour or so to write up my answer, I have monsters to kill, trains to organise, and trophies to win though - busy, busy...

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I have half been working on an analysis post to gauge engagement via application. That has take a back seat (on the bench) though as I've been gaming - which by the way, is the short way of saying, 'hiding from the real world'. I've been doing this on and off since I was about 7. A 48k Spectrum with rubber keys and a separate tape deck started it off, and then the upgrade to the 128k, an Amiga 500 and 1200, a Super NES, and finally a PC. Yes, I've not owned a console since I was at high school.

So today it's PC or nothing, unless you count a bit of Words With Friends on the phone. And what games am I playing? Old ones!

Football Manager 2012

Yeah I know it's almost 2019, but who gives a shit, the game is pretty much the same as the original release in 2005. The original dates back to the late nineties under the name Championship Manager, and the wiki mentions 'takeover' and 'Sega', right.......

I'm playing the 2012 version, which means I can go back to when Manchester United were good and winning trophies left, right, and center. However, in these games I like starting from the bottom, building from scratch, and then standing back and admiring (or not), 500 hours later. This time around I started the game with my home town club, Macclesfield Town. No money, no players, a small ground, and a small ground that hardly any fans come to visit.

No worries though, after 7 seasons in charge, I've managed to reach the top division and win the League Cup. This season I'll be looking for a top 6 finish, and maybe even the England job.

My profile below is an output of the decisions I've made on and off the field for the past 7 seasons. Press conferences are pointless for the most part, and so I let my assistant waste his time attending those. I'm currently paid over 30 times more than I was back at the start of the game, not a bad rise in weekly pay in 7 years.

The club are pretty happy with finances, but they aren't happy with me selling players. Make your minds up lads?

To be fair though, they have succumbed to my requests to update the infrastructure and facilities. When this next upgrade is complete, The Moss Rose will have a 16000 all-seater stadium - probably about half the size of what's required for the top division. Luckily, the TV deal earns the clubs in the top division a shitload, enough for players, wages, and fancy requests, like under-soil heating.

Oh yes, did I mention that you have to pick 11 players to play a football match? This game reminds me of my childhood, can still engross me for weeks, and should be labelled with warns for addiction. I have a friend who was too engrossed to pass the 2nd year at University - oops!

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Railroad Tycoon 2: Platinum

This game is older than the above and has been with me and my Steam account for over a decade. Another simulation/strategy with shit graphics - that's how I like them!

Steam tells me I've only played 245 hours on this one, CM 2012 states 450....

So what do you do? Well, you lay track, buy trains, move goods and people, and dabble in the stock market, if the scenario/objectives permit. I'd say that a fair amount of my geography knowledge comes from playing this game for 20 years or so. I can tell you that the fastest way to get to one side of the Alps to the other is to go north, unless you have a lot of cash and can afford to slap a tunnel straight through.

Got 15 minutes, I bet you haven't! But just in case you want to get a feel for this classic, here's a walk-through on the first level of the classic campaign.

Once you know the controls, what you need at each station as far as hotels, etc, and what is good to take where to be used/turned into something else, you are pretty much set. And then comes the difficultly level. -20% revenue for human players, +20 for the computer....... that's pretty tough going, especially with 7/8 computer opponents on the same map.

(This time around, which is probably the 5/6th) I am currently stuck on a level set in Germany called 'when the walls come down'. You get a brief history lesson at the start of each map - no prizes for guessing what this scenario based around.

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Those are just two of the games I've been playing this weekend. Both are about as presentable in a post as each other - neither should be presented :) They are my go-to games though when: the weather is cold, I have no cash, and there's no-one hang out with. I guess i'll be seeing more of both of them over the next few months.

I've also been playing @steemmonsters, and Elite 2: Dangerous, but I think I'll save those for another day.

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Right, back to my football team, I really need a new defender and think I might need to get the wallet out...

Cheers!

Asher