Topic: Life doesn’t get in the way.

[TechPro]

You’ve heard the phrase “Life gets in the way”, and sometimes it may seem that way.   I’ve been a long-time member at PlanetDescent.net and before that was active on PlanetDescent.com, DescentBB.net, and DescentBB.com.  Unfortunately, as time went by I eventually was spending more time on other stuff and a lot less time on Descent related things.  This being the reason (and not an excuse) for me seeming to be “gone” for a long time with only occasional appearances.  You could say for me “Life got in the way”, but that wouldn’t be the truth.

Rather, Life brought even more to me and my family which meant there was so much more to be involved with as Life moves forward.  My boys (all three) are taller than me with the youngest about to be taller, and the youngest will be a Senior next school year.  My daughter is a woman and I cannot classify her as “my little girl” anymore.  My wife has multiple projects that she works on (and I fully support her with the projects) that she is able to do with her physical limitations.  My job has continued to grow and change over the years with multiple projects and continued changes in the future.  Of course, up-keep of home and possessions is always a “grown up” attention point along the way.  All these contributed in unexpected ways to shift my focus to things other than Descent.

You could say “Life got in the way” for me, but I would challenge that and say “Life blossomed” which is how it should be for me, and for you, too.

It occurred to me, this is beginning to say that I’m going to continue to be essentially “gone”, but that isn’t true.  Rather, thanks to the Coronavirus self-quarantine, I’ve ended up with more available time in the home.  Thankfully, my job allows me to work from home easily (yeah, I’m lucky that way).

What I’m trying to say is while Life has brought much into my life that shifted my attention, I have not forgotten Descent (in fact I still often play Descent, and now also Overload), and I have for some time wanted to do more again with these games and the Descent community.  Oh sure, I’m getting older and my reflexes are not as good as they once were (my boys beat me much more easily now), but I still enjoy Descent and it is still and well favored and honored piece of my collection of entertainment activities.

I hope Descent still is for you, too.

[VANGUARD]

It's sad to imagine that a few months back, life was as normal as life was normal to you. And now, some are locked up and/or restricted in some fashion.
What else is also sad is whether you believe in the coronavirus or not, it has affected us to some degree, or a great degree.
Fortunately for me, most has stayed the same. None of my two boys are in school yet (My oldest would be this fall though) and our daycare is my mom watching them.
My job is getting very busy now, as we work on medical table tops. My wife works in a grocery store.

The hard part is that the boys love going out and that just can't happen the same way anymore.

I hope it's not too insulting to say "if life gives you lemons, make lemonade."
Make the best of this. Maybe catch up on movies, games, family times, projects, etc...

Descent still is a part of my life, so to speak. I still listen to Descent 1 music. I play Overload.  I know it's not Descent per se, but I miss Descent Freespace SO MUCH.
Might like the D3 music again.

Good luck to all.

Vanguard out- (For now)

[Scyphi]

whether you believe in the coronavirus or not

The fact we have to make statements like this is utterly ridiculous, but sadly there are people out there that are in denial. 

On happier topics, my life affairs is much like TechPro's currently. I work as a housekeeper in a hotel, and obviously been working less hours as there are less guests, but we're far from shut down, so there's still work to be had. It helps that my boss is taking advantage of the slump in activity to do some needed renovating, which will help create work for me further down the line, cleaning up the lingering residue from this renovating and getting rooms clean and ready for service again. Otherwise, life's been mostly the same as usual, despite everything.

Even before coronavirus though, I've been gaming much less across the board than I had been before, not that I was ever that heavy of a "gamer" to begin with. My focuses in life shifted, as had my priorities, mostly for the better I think. So I don't play as much of Descent or related titles as nearly as much as I used to...but it's certainly not forgotten. It's regularly still in my mind even if just from a daydreaming perspective, I still listen to the music, still keep an eye out for new levels of interest I haven't played yet or just replaying old ones if and when time does permit.

In short, even if life's demands have shifted, nothing's keeping me from still being a Descent fan, through and through. 

[VANGUARD]

whether you believe in the coronavirus or not

I was basically getting to is that people are affected one way or another.

There are those who deny it, but are angry because businesses are closed or (strongly) restricted due to a lie.
And there are those who go by it, have a lock down and not see friends and family.

No matter where one stands, it's rough. And to respect both sides. If people want to go for a walk, great. Get some fresh air. Some want to wear masks, no harm there.

And as for friends and family, at least we have phones, some have facebook, online chat/videos, etc..
And I think the worst is over. Again, whether we agree or even like Trump, he may be turning things around soon. It doesn't really make a lot of sense to just turn things around unless it's because summer is close, and a virus can't survive the summer heat. Maybe hospitals are getting quieter, less patients?

Anyway, I have some games on a few consoles, but for the past year or so, I too have been getting bored of games. I miss space battles SO MUCH.
Manticore Galaxy on Fire (Think that's it), isn't too bad. But it's still no Descent FreeSpace.

[Hunter]

Life definitely does get in the way at times. I went awol for a number of years from the community, mainly due to other interests and real life stuff. But I came back, a little late perhaps, and finished up some big projects in recent years. I'm glad I did, because they were gnawing at me for a long time, even if they diverged from original ideas. I love Descent (and Overload, Freespace etc) as a whole but D3 in particular is important to me because it helped me get through tough times when I was a teen. I hope it gets a decent source port one of these days, even a basic one to improve system support would be welcome. The Linux port is a start, but things are moving too slowly.

[VANGUARD]

Descent 3 online was the best gaming experience I had. To my knowledge (which isn't much), Overload is the closest to Descent I can get my hands on. I don't have Windows, so that leaves out Freespace 2 on steam, and most other Descent games. Although, I think they may be on linux.

I have Overload because I have a PS4. Manticore - Galaxy on Fire is the best I can get with the FreeSpace feel, as yet, not really. It's better than Strike Vector in my opinion, but it still lacks wingmen, commands, attacking capital ships, defending, etc..
There is a little of it, but not on a grand scale.

[Hunter]

FS2 has a Linux build in the form of FSOPEN. You can get it by using the Knossos tool. If you can't compile it, you could always use the fall back FSO Installer which uses Java.

And yes, all the Descent games have Linux builds... even D3, though to be honest it's too buggy at the moment.

[VANGUARD]

May have to look into that if I get time soon.

[Matthew]

Glad to see life is treating you all well! I've been absent here for a very long time, mostly due to just not having time to keep active in every community ever. I still check in once in a while and fire up DXX-Rebirth when I'm feeling nostalgic. In the 11 years or so since I first joined here I've grown from an annoying high school kid into a successful adult... Almost 2 years ago the day I bought my first house. I'm on the verge of becoming a senior system engineer at work, in no small part to Descent 3 and the interest in fiddling with computers it instilled me as a child. I guess you could say things are going pretty well. I do so long for a decent source port of Descent 3 though... It will always hold the most special place for me, but it just runs like such crap on a modern system. I own Overload but have yet to actually try it, I've heard it doesn't have much in the way of story though.

[Hunter]

Hey Matt! Good to see you here. I often wonder what you're up to these days. I'm actually playing EVE again (sort of, no PVP anymore) and you can find me in the SGAM channel. As for Overload, actually it DOES have a decent story with a lot of easter eggs relating to Descent. I highly recommend it!

[Scyphi]

I would also highly recommend Overload, Matt. Though it's gameplay is fairly D1-esque (go in, blow up reactor, get out), Overload still takes some of the best elements from all three Descent games but very expertly refines them for a modern age, making those best elements feel even better at times. It's a very well thought out game. And yes, it does have a story. Not quite as involved as, say, Descent 3, but definitely much more story than D1 or D2, and it's the story that's a good part of its draw, after the gameplay.

There is also a number of fan-made custom levels for Overload one can play out there, though I haven't taken the time to play any of them as of yet myself, so I can't in good faith make any recommendations at this time. Maybe if Techpro pops in here, he could suggest a few--I know he's played through a good number of them...but topics for later, I suppose.

Anyway, likewise nice to see you here again. Do forgive the dust, though--sadly, all of us are not quite as active on these forums as we once were.

[Matthew]

I am technically still subbed to EVE, though I haven't logged in for almost a year. EVE is more fun to read about and imagine than it is to actually play... My sub will run out soon and I don't think I'll be renewing. Today I am planning on playing the new Microsoft Flight Simulator, maybe I'll give Overload a go sometime after that.

[Kaiaatzl]

I mean, it's been said twice already, but I haven't gotten to talk yet.
Overload for the most part does a good job telling a large-scale story in a small-scale way.  It ends up feeling a little like a sci-fi murder mystery, with the same sorts of twists you might get in something like an Agatha Christie novel.
So there is definitely a complex story there, it just might not be presented in the way you'd expect, especially from the old Descent games.

And when it's time for community content I might tell you that the two community level pack DLC's are a good place to start, 'cause a lot of the same authors who made some of the really nice mission packs for D1 and D2 got involved in those.   Folks like Solrazor, Sirius, Darkhorse, Shroudeye... and together the two of them more or less double the length of the solo game.
Or I might not tell you that.  I haven't really decided yet. 

[Matthew]

Alright, maybe I'll give it a try. I quite liked the D3 story, although I know that's not exactly a popular opinion!