Exasperated Max

Mad Max currently ranks #13 on Steam as having the most hours of play. I intend to knock it off the top 20.

Rather than a buggy remnant of a quest I completed, I like to think it means metaphysically.
It's right.... I should.

I recently finished the game... all I cared to of it. I liked the game play... cruising around in the Magnum Opus (the game's customizable/upgradable car). Harpooning and blowing vehicles up was fun. Clearing camps was a slog because gathering scrap is arduous and the combat is a chore... or the other way around even. I got all but the last two areas cleared of threat and I have no desire to do the abysmally boring Mine Clearing missions to finish them up... frankly I have no incentive. Where the game lacked was the story missions. I saw in a game magazine sometime ago... in reference to the protagonist of Secret of Evermore. "It's hard to [care for] a character who doesn't [care]." Max gives little in the way of excrement. He just wants to get his car and leave. You know those minecraft players who just want to blaze through adventure maps to get to the end? That's him. He cares about his car and his own skin. Occasionally he shows a shred of almost exasperated humanity, like "Fine. I'll be a decent human being for once"  but he's no hero. He is quite mad, after all. It's a very nihilistic setting that comes to a very nihilistic conclusion. I haven't seen the new Mad Max film yet, but compared to the original films with Mel Gibson, this game was a downer.

A super rare splash of color after nearly 70 hours of play.

Tangent: I have been playing We Happy Few occasionally. It's unfinished... in alpha, but it looks good and has a neat premise. I have not gotten to Wellington Wells proper, full of the shiny happy (drugged up) people... but being stuck in the downer portion is incentive to get away from these sad sacks. I'm trying to be less of a downer myself. According to spritely Lindsey Stirling, your brain can't tell reality from imagination (which is the definition of crazy... so we're all nuts.... just as I suspected!) which is why the fake it till you make it mentality is healthy and works. Apparently, smiling and laughing out loud (Yuna thought so too... whoa, weird) releases endorphins to trick your brain into thinking "teh happy things, lol". Also. standing in a confident pose releases testosterone to make you feel confident.

So yes... where was I... oh, Mad Max. Screw this game. It's finished.... stick a fork in it... it's done! Now to supplant those 70 hours I devoted to it. So here's the plan. Here's a graphic of the games beneath it in my steam list ordered by playtime. Playing those are the most likely to accomplish this mission... quest.... thing!
Batman Arkham City - Can do! I loved this game, and even though I have it on console (which I prefer to play it on) I can burn a couple of hours mopping up side missions.
Undertale - The kids will more than likely play through it again at some point. Maybe I'll give it a go... who knows.
DC Universe Online - All I have to do is update it and that should fulfill the required hours. Not even kidding.
Half Life 2 - Have been playing on and off. This one never really gets old.
7 Days to Die - Hmmmm. Pass.
Alan Wake - I've started it and lost interest several times, but I want to do a full replay at some point.
Portal 2 - Still a classic, and I need to finish the multiplayer levels with my sons.
Duke Nukem Forever - I could play it again. Step off!
Dark Messiah of M&M - I think I know what I'm slotting in now that Mad Max is off.
Batman: Arkham Origins-  Nah.

So that's a task that should take about a year. I'm not obsessing over it, but when It's done, I'll get some satisfaction out of it.