Cristian Rodriguez’s Top Things of 2024

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Multiplayer

So far I put 124hs in this game. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it is because it is on Game Pass. Maybe it is the omni movement. Maybe it is the maps pool. Or maybe it’s the combination of everything I listed so far, but the thing is I can’t stop playing this video game.

Dune: Part Two

Let me tell you about my favorite Canadian (after my friend Audie), Denis mother fucking Villenueve. This dude cooks the most beautiful, most heartfelt movies I have ever seen. This movie is so good it made me cry and I hate crying.

Helldivers II

Nothing gets me going like protecting Freedom all across the galaxy. Not gonna lie even after being a defender of the first game and being very excited for the sequel I did not expect this game to be this fun and definitely wasn’t expecting how popular it became.

Mashle: Magic and Muscles – Season 2

It’s just a dumb comedy/shonen anime that I’ve been enjoying lately. This show kinda filled that void Gintama left after it ended.

Listening to Roadside Picnic While Playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2

I literally sat down at a fire and listened to the audio book.

Free Healthcare

I always loved free healthcare, but this year I had to interact with it more than I ever wanted and for that I have to give it a shout out. I am of the belief that there is nothing in this world more noble than fighting for free and universal healthcare.

Balatro

This game is a problem. It will take over your life if you aren’t careful. This is probably the best “one more round” game ever made.

Kaiju No. 8

I just love an anime with a protagonist that is in his 30s. Oh and I love Kaijus.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II

If you want to feel like a walking tank and destroy chaos minions left and right then this game is perfect for you.

Dandadan

From the outside, this show might look like another Shonen full of colorful action but this show is so much more than that. In its supernatural vs extraterrestrial story hides a beautiful cast of complex and lovely characters that, at first sight, might seem wacky just for the sake of wackyness. Art and animation are incredible but the real beauty of this anime shows up when it delves into its characters’ relationships and their respective backgrounds from the unshakable love of a mother, to the loneliness people experience in today’s society. This show hits every topic without losing a beat.

Leverless Controller Haute42 M16 Plus

I fucking love this thing. I started my journey into the leverless world a year ago by making my own and, don’t get me wrong, I love that piece of garbage I put together with bent pieces of wood and shitty screws from work but I needed something more portable and slicker if I wanted to go to tournaments.

So, a couple of months ago, when the opportunity to get my hands on a Haute42 presented itself, I went ham on it with not one but two Haute42 controllers. And got the t16 and m16 one to travel and the other one to play at home respectively.

And let me tell you these are the best controllers I have ever played fighting games on, the feeling of the switches, the placement of the buttons, the amount of buttons at my disposal, the flexibility to configure them in any way I want, having all that stuff is just *chef kiss* perfection. I do prefer the m16 just because of the machined aluminum body. And best of all they are kinda cheap!

GODZILLA MINUS ONE/MINUS COLOR

It’s Godzilla Minus One but in black & white. It sounds like a gimmick but trust me is far from it. Watching this movie in black & white really enhances its already amazing CG. It also gives dramatic moments an extra touch of heaviness. Post WW2 Japan already feels very colorless so it makes sense this movie works so well this way.

1000xResist

Intergenerational trauma is a bitch and it will try to break your brain. This game is so good me rambling about it would be a disservice to it. You HAVE to play this game to understand how incredible it is.