games – Vermilion Sands

Egyptian (Virtual) Holiday

Admin1 has been playing Assassin’s Creed Origins, a vast open-world game set in Egypt, circa 57BC. Some effort has gone into making it accurate, with consultant historians and linguists, and it’s undeniably impressive.
Here’s an eagle’s-eye view of Alexandria at sunset, taking in the Hippodrome, the museum, the famous library, the theatre, docks and ending up at the Ancient Wonder Pharos lighthouse, rediscovered in 1968.

There are also pyramids and the Sphinx…
…and, of course, cats:

Meanwhile, Admin1 is reading The Chalk Circle Man by Fred Vargas and Admin2 is reading The Other Mother by Michel Bussi.

Game On

Admin1’s new game is Watch Dogs: Legion set in a strangely realistic London that even includes Admin2’s one-time flat (above The Old Chest, though it was not called that then).

We are watching Roadkill which includes London scenes that strangely echo the game.
Admin1 is reading When It Grows Dark by Jorn Lier Horst.
We scored 9 on the GWQ.

Sundog

Admin1 is all aglow because his cricket team stole the show. He’s also been playing The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim since his birthday — thanks, Admin2!
Admin2 is reading Big Sky by Kate Atkinson.
We scored 10 on the GWQ.

Happy Birthday Dave

He got Theresa May’s resignation as a birthday present, spent the morning on the climate march and got into the Guardian.

and it was the sunniest day of the year: 12.89kWh.

Admin1 is playing Bioshock and Admin2 is reading Inhuman Resources by Pierre Lemaitre. What a lovely day.

Look East

View from the drone. Somewhere on the horizon is the Hook Moor Wind Farm. Today was the warmest February day we have ever recorded: 19.5°C.
Admin1 is reading The Stone Circle by Elly Griffiths and playing The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Admin2 is reading The Book of Hidden Things by Francesco Dimitri: a reunion of rural Italians with their friend who is either mental, magical or a minion of the mafia.

Two Stews to View

On the top, Red Dead Redemption 2 stew … on the bottom, Leeds stew. We have dumplings!
RDR2 also has coffee, but we have Leeds coffee: a shot of Tia Maria and a double espresso topped with double cream. Yum!
Admin1 is reading Slow Horses by Mick Herron. Admin2 is reading Bryant & May and the Invisble Code by Christopher Fowler.

Red or Dead

Another lurid sunset.
A cold-suffering Admin1 is playing Red Dead Redemption II and reading Dead Lions by Mick Herron, in which a motley crew of disgraced MI5 agents stumble on a possible nest of Soviet sleeper agents. Our heroes are a mostly obnoxious bunch, but the writing is so sharp and funny that you end up rooting for them anyway; a really superb read.

Last Poppy

The two flushes of poppies are bookends of the summer.
Admin1 is reading The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths. Admin2 is reading An American Story by Christopher Priest (thx Admin1); 9/11 conspiracy theories with some mathematical flummery and some impressive scenes. Admin1 is playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

Gulls Just Want to Have Fun

Admin1 is reading Cut Short by Leigh Russell, which was readable but had a worryingly negative attitude towards anyone who wasn’t middle class. And her detective is rather emotionally erratic … still, first novel so room for improvement.
Admin1 has been playing Grand Theft Auto 5 (thanks Gez & Dave!) on his new XBox (thanks Admin2!).