Viljami, Author at Intensive Gaming Diary

Nostalgia With Mega Drive

Posted on September 20, 2025 by Viljami

I found a good way to feel some nostalgia with Mega Drive. I bought this game collection that has over 50 Mega Drive games. It cost me something around 20 to 30 euros. It is actually a “code-in-a-box” game this time. You can probably very easily tell if this collection is available as a digital copy. I don’t have a clue about that. I actually accidentally bought this version of this collection. Anyways this product is available also for other modern gaming devices. I have seen recently this available for Xbox Series X for 20 euros for a used and physical copy.

This seems to me like a bargain. I mean in the same package you get three Phantasy Star games, several Sonic titles and some games like Golden Axe and Streets of Rage not forgetting to mention a game like Kid Chameleon. There are so many good games in this collection. Even if you are just barely familiar with Mega Drive I can still recommend this collection for you.

If you think that you would buy each of these over 50 games separately I think many of us video game hobbyists would end up in bankruptcy. Phantasy Star II alone costs over 100 euros. The price tag for this collection would probably have four numerals. So, the point here is, they haven’t scant with this one a bit. These are definitely all good games. It would be hard to try to figure what game would be missing. Well, I did just come up with one game that’s missing and that game is Splatterhouse II. Splatterhouse III is also a good game and its not included in this collection.

The way I feel nostalgia while playing this game collections games is very clear. I did own a Mega Drive back in the first half of 1990s. Sonic The Hedgehog was the first game I played on this system. There is something so magical when I hear the music of this game. Take also for example the music of Streets of Rage II. What 16-bit game does have a better soundtrack? I think you are going to have hard time figuring that out.

What is so interesting about the audio side of the technology of Mega Drive gaming console seems to me the fact that it was actually a sound that was not CD quality. Sony achieved CD quality later but Mega Drive did this with its hardware and set the bar for Nintendo that also released a 16-bit console Super Nintendo. I think for a while Mega Drive was the leader when it comes to audio side of video games. We are talking about real history here. CD quality audio might seem as constant but you have to think hoe the technology was back then. Even PC didn’t have such a good audio quality back then. Of course Mega Drive gave some hard time for Nintendo that had to compete for several years with its 8-bit system NES.

I do recommend this Mega Drive collection for you. The price is very cheap. Also you get to see this cool virtual environment inside the menu of this collection. This is very cool feature. Some games, like for example, Phantasy Star II, that has already been mentioned in this blog post, might be games that you wouldn’t want to spend several tens of hours playing. These are retro games after all. I think if you totally hate retro games you have to consider if you really want to buy this. Modern games do have usually an overall better game design. This is because the industry has been developing several tens of years since we witnessed Mega Drive or anything like it.

What to Expect From PS6?

Posted on September 18, 2025 by Viljami

What a nice way to start a day with some coffee and pondering about the release of PS6 on a blog post. It is now September in 2025. PS5 was released in 2020. It faced success but also some very deep problems with availability since we were struggling with corona virus already some years ago. Despite of these problems PS5 has sold to this day already over 80 million consoles. And there is still time to sell some more. PS5 is still very much in the markets and in the production. We are not going see this console going anywhere anytime soon. But still we have to consider that there is going to be a PS6 released maybe, and this is speculation, in two to three years.

What to think about PS6 right now? Is it too soon for a new PlayStation console? When will it be released? Will it have a backwards compatibility? Also, it would be interesting to know if this new console will be a hybrid of a handheld console and the traditional console that has a dock so you can attach it to your television or a screen. As I have kept my ears and eyes open I have heard rumors about Sony very much admiring the success of Nintendo Switch 1 and 2. It would be interesting to see a new console like this. There are also many ways to create a console. So, it is very interesting to see what Sony can figure out and also will it be able to actually compete with its toughest competitors.

I haven’t to this day bought a PS5 console. If I would buy a PS5 I would like to have the version of this console that has the optical disc drive. The console is very much compatible with PS4 games. I do own a PS4. There are some reasons why I haven’t bought a PS5. Early when Xbox Series S/X consoles were released I figured that I want the Xbox. I decided to buy the new Xbox. While there are some exclusive games on both of these systems it was my decision to buy Xbox Series X. I have only recently thought about buying a PS5.

I do have almost ten consoles in my current setup. There just isn’t enough room for one more PlayStation console. This has to be considered also because the latest PlayStation is a big in size. It wouldn’t fit to my setup and I would have to place it to the side of my 55 inch television. It just doesn’t fit there. I already have a retro gaming PC on the left side of my TV and Xbox Series X on the left side of my television. Why would I buy it? There are some good games like Spider-Man and Ratchet & Clank and Astro Bot but that’s about it. It doesn’t have a huge library of exclusive games. It is also possible to play these games as they are ported to PC.

Why would I need a PS6? I am assuming that it would have backwards compatibility to at least PS5 games if not even PS4 games. PS4 was for me a somewhat a disappointment. It didn’t renew gaming like PS3 did. It was just a slight update to PS3. PS4 doesn’t have a SSD drive which makes it a bit slow already. PS6 would need to bring some new games along if it gets released. Are we already ready for a new PlayStation? Could the fifth PlayStation still be utilized for new games? It has to be said that we are not seeing as many games released recently because they are more like huge projects than something that talented game developers are constantly innovating on. The gaming scenery is a huge business and not a child’s playfield anymore.

With all this talk about PS6 I am still very excited about it. We do need some good games for it. What will be the price tag of this new console when it gets released? There are so many questions that we will just have to wait and see if we want an answer of some kind. Probably Sony will publish some information. Until then this is all speculation. Rumors are spreading and news posts are getting published. Last but not least we have to consider what are the specs of this new console? Do we have to move from 4K to 8K? Do we need to buy a new television once more or is there some other way to improve? I have already exchanged my television for at least two times since I built my current setup. I actually went from Full HD 32 inch to Full HD 42 inch to my current 4K 55 inch television.

I am leaving you now with these questions. These questions are open and waiting to be answered. I might find the answer. It just isn’t, yet, published. We are experiencing the most significant era of gaming that involves some retro gaming but also some new consoles and also games for them. What a great time to experience something we call video games. We will get back in another blog post another time, soon.

V-Rally 4

Posted on September 17, 2025 by Viljami

I just started playing V-Rally 4. I got it for a cheap price of three euros. This was a digital purchase through Steam store. I made the purchase a bit over two weeks ago. Seems to me that I was very lucky because I just checked and the price for V-Rally 4 is now 30 euros on Steam. I am playing this game with my brand new Windows 11 desktop computer. I also have a 4K display. So, the graphics of this rally game look really nice.

This is the latest game in V-Rally series. The game was first released in 2018. This means that it isn’t the newest rally game available. It also although indicates that any patches that would fix any gameplay or performance issues have been probably very much solved. I have to admit that I am only in the beginning with V-Rally 4. I have played it for only about half an hour. I do find it a pleasant video game about rally racing.

Some earlier releases in the series that V-Rally 4 belongs to can be detailed as retro games. I think first two games were released already on the first PlayStation 1. I somewhat remember trying to play V-Rally 3. This game, I think, was current in the era of PS2. After a quick fact check through a search engine I found the information. The third V-Rally game was actually released in 2002 for PS2, Xbox, GameCube and Windows (PC). So, there seems to be a gap of sixteen years between V-Rally 4 and the previous game in the series that is V-Rally 3.

I don’t have a clear memory of playing any V-Rally game on a PS1. I am quite sure that I did never own a copy of V-Rally one or two. I might have played V-Rally 3 for a while but I don’t remember that also so clearly. I do remember games that belong to Colin McRae Rally series. I also recall clear memories of the WRC rally game series. Also, I have to mention a very good, but a bit old, rally game series that was released in the 2000s for original Xbox. This series is Rallisport Challenge one and two. Especially the sequel is a very good game. When it comes to conversation about the best rally games of all time you have to mention also Richard Burns Rally every time.

So, I am yet to experience probably a good rally game. V-Rally 4 is promised to have content for a decent 21 hours. This information can be found from the “How Long To Beat” website. This website and also a database can be utilized or at least I use it to determine a duration for any game be it retro or new. V-Rally 4 provides racing but also some strategic decision making. You have to have a complete team and you are managing a budget. You have to have a manager, a technician and an engineer or possibly several. The career journey begins with a moderate vehicle. You have to make smart decisions all the from the beginning to the end.

I am expecting V-Rally 4 to be at least an entertaining experience. I hope it has enough challenge to keep me interested in the game all the way to the finish. It seems to me that you have to keep your eyes open when it comes to Steam. They actually have an autumn sale coming very soon. After another fact check I can confirm that there is a sale on Steam from 29th of September to 6th of October. Besides all the games that are going to be on sale I am also very much waiting for Silent Hill f to drop. This game has a price of 80 euros. This is the standard edition and there is also a “Digital Deluxe” edition that costs 90 euros.