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My Options Overview / Guide (V2)
Greeting Theta Gang boys and girls,
I hope you're well and not bankrupt after last week. I'm just now recovering mentally myself. I saw a few WSB converts and some newbies asking for tips, so here you go. V2 of my Options guide. I hope it helps.
I spent a huge amount of time learning about options and tried to distill my knowledge down into a helpful guide. This should especially be useful for newbies and growing options traders.
While I feel I’m a successful trader, I'm not a guru and my advice is not meant to be gospel, but this will hopefully be a good starting point, teach you a lot, and make you a better trader. I plan to keep typing up more info from my notebook, expanding this guide, and posting it every couple months.
Any feedback or additions are appreciated
Per requests, I added details of good and bad trades I made. Some painful lessons learned are now included. I also tried to organize this better as it got longer. Here's what I tell options beginners: I would strongly recommend buying a beginner's options book and read it cover to cover. That helped me a lot.
I like this beginner book:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GWSXX8U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_OxNDFb2GK9YW7 Helpful websites: Don't trade until you understand: - You can lose your entire contract value when buying.
- You can lose a lot of money when selling "naked", theoretically unlimited.
- How option expiration works.
- Theta (decay) and how it works. This is imperative since it's attrition when buying and a payout when selling. https://www.optionseducation.org/advancedconcepts/theta
- DTE: Days till expiration/expiry
- Options positions with respect to price:
- ITM: In the money; strike is below stock value. Signif
- ATM: At the money; strike is just at or above the stock value, often very highly traded. Can be very effective with moderate - long term expiry.
- NTM: Near the money; strike is above the stock value, but fairly close. Slightly unofficial term.
- OTM: Out of the money; price is at least a few strikes from the current stock price. I would say 10-30% over stock price.
- Very OTM: Not a real definition, this is essentially a lottery ticket. Cheap, but almost certain to expire worthless unless there is explosive movement.
- Understand delta in general and how delta changes with ITM and OTM options.
- Understand all the greeks at a high level, as you get better understand them well. The greeks: https://www.optionsplaybook.com/options-introduction/option-greeks/
- IV, IV crush, and how IV affects pricing. In general, you want to sell when IV is high and buy when the IV is low. Increasing IV is good for held calls/puts. IV drop or crush is generally good for sellers.
- Selling options can be quite beneficial. Once you have a good general understanding, lookup thetagang . Kamikaze Cash has good youtube videos on most theta strategies (linked above). I personally believe selling options (especially cash secured) is much safer and can consistently make you profits. Θ Gang 4 life.
- FOMO and how to avoid chasing a dangerous trend. DO NOT CHASE FROM FOMO!
- What intrinsic and extrinsic value are. Know how they are affected by being exercised/assigned and how theta affects them.
- Understand that some of WSB recommendations are straight up high-risk gambling and factor in the information accordingly. Be careful with Meme stocks and the survivorship bias on YOLO plays. However, I love the sub and think it’s hilarious. It has a lot of valuable information / DD if you are comfortable with the “colorful” language. It’s also great if you like rocket ship emojis.
Basics / Mechanics - Understand the 4 "main" option types. Buying or selling a call and buying or selling a put. Spreads and more complex multi-legged option strategies are based off these in some way (see below)
- You can sell calls with 100 shares of stock or if you own an underlying longer term option; see LEAPS and PMCCs later. Selling calls naked is incredibly risky and often requires Level 4 (very advanced) permissions and usually a lot of capital. I will literally never sell calls naked since I don't want to ruin my life and end up living in a dumpster eating saltine crackers.
- Puts can be sold/written cash covered (cash secured), which means you have the cash in your account to buy 100 shares. Your broker will put this money on hold until the trade is closed. Puts can be sold "naked" using Margin and Level 3 (with most brokers). Your broker will hold a percentage of cost of 100 shares (often 30-40%, 100% on meme stocks) allowing you to sell more puts. This increases your available capital/power as well as increasing risk.
General Tips and Ideas: - Don't EVER leave (short) spreads open on expiration day, close them. (more details below)
- Start off trading very small. Slowly build up over weeks / months. You need to get accustomed to a fifty dollar swing a day, then a few hundred, then a few thousand. You need to ensure you don't get emotional (see below). I started trading options with 5k, then 25k, 50k, and later over 100k. I added my own funds over time and used my gains to build my account. Don’t go all in immediately, that’s dangerous and unwise.
- Especially as you build up the amount of money you have invested, keep it diversified among several stocks.
- Don't go all in on one thing, ever. Be able to take a hit from one stock and not mortally wound your portfolio.
- A company may be doing great, then there's a major product issue out of nowhere. If you are overexposed in one stock this can really hurt you.
- I had to roll options I sold that were about to expire completely worthless because FDX's CEO changed and the stock took a hard dip.
- Don't trade emotionally. If you realize you are emotionally trading for vengeance, you should probably exit the trade and cool off for several days with that stock. Same if you get caught up in a wave of hysteria.
- Have a plan for every trade, ideally with entries / exits that are specific values, ranges, or a set condition. This helps remove emotions. This is super important for strong movements and high volatility (see later).
- Use an options profit calculator from your broker or an online one before entering a "new" trade, especially a complex multi legged trade: https://www.optionsprofitcalculator.com/
- “Rolling” an option: Closing your existing option and opening a similar one at different strike and/or expiration.
- Rolling a call “Up” would be selling a call you own and buying a cheaper call at a higher strike.
- Rolling a put “Down and out” closes your original one and buying or selling one at a lower strike at a longer expiry.
- Better broker interfaces have a literal “Roll” button. I know E-trade does. You can manually do it by selecting relevant contract legs.
- If you have a losing trade, re-evaluate it. If your initial assumption is definitely incorrect, close it. Don't stay in losing trades forever and lose the entire value of the option over stubbornness. If you re-evaluate and you think your assumption was right, hold, potentially consider adding another cheaper option (or buy another call / put). Rolling out sold options can help here.
- Don't try to day trade, especially with options. It's statistically unlikely to be profitable. Day-trading with options introduces extra liquidity risks and is dangerous, especially with spreads.
- Try not to over-trade, you'll likely mis-time the market over time. When I get emotional I over trade, then lose additional money on wash sales. If you scale your entries into positions it should help alleviate your desire to exit positions when they turn badly against you. Whenever I buy calls I do it at larger increments after W almost made me loss my hair; luckily it eventually came back.
- NEVER enter a position on a stock you have no idea about, especially when you read about it online or heard about it from some rando.
- At market open options contracts are often volatile and inflated. Buying during this time can be more expensive. Options are usually cheaper mid-day, I read somewhere 2-3PM is cheapest. I’ve had success around 12-1PM EST after prices settle.
- Try wheeling on cheaper stocks once you get all fundamentals down.
- When selling puts if you are very bullish consider "doubling down"; note this is higher risk. Use the credit from your put sale to buy shares or a cheap call. This can be roughly inversed with puts, except I wouldn't ever recommend shorting shares.
- Learn from your mistakes. You can’t go back in time and beating yourself up (to a point) is useless. Make a physical &/or mental note of it so you don’t do it again. If you don’t learn from it, then beat yourself up so you won’t do it again.
- If you have friends that like to trade, I find it helpful to discuss strategies and planned plays. I talk openly with my close friends about my current holdings and planned trades, it helps keep me accountable. If I get a wide-eyed look, I might be doing something excessively risky or stupid. I’ve over-leveraged myself in calls twice and I knew I shouldn’t have done it both times. When I tell my friends what I did and I’m embarrassed, it exemplifies the face that I shouldn’t have done it in the first place. You will also get ideas for new strategies or plays from them. It’s good to stay versatile and use multiple strategies when appropriate. Beware of group think/echo chambers.
- I recommend NEVER telling someone what to buy/sell and when. I’ll tell people MY plays or what I like and why, but I will not encourage them to emulate what I do. Depending on the audience, I’ll tell them my exact positions along with my exit and entrance strategy. With closer friends I’ll offer my thoughts on their trades (if asked). If my friend is doing something really risky (one of my friends does some scary stuff) I may ask them if they want my advice, and provide it, especially if they overlooked a risk/event. I will not encourage someone to execute/enter a trade since it has a high potential for hurt feelings or animosity all around.
- Don’t fall in love with a stock. Just because something made you money before and you have high confidence in it doesn’t mean it will keep performing. I joke that FDX betrayed me when it started dipping and losing me money. I was over-confident of its bounce-back and sold too many puts too quickly. I’m in several losing trades because of it. However, I will keep good stocks in my rostetracking list or try different strategies or re-enter trades when they change their behavior.
- As you start to both buy and sell options and get more experience in general, you'll start seeing the two sides to every trade. You will likely start adjusting your strategies or trying new trades out because of this. Things will likely click one day. Most/all the greeks and options concepts will become almost second nature. For me this was when I could build an Iron Condor from scratch, which was a watershed moment involving a good understanding of many strategies.
- Understand Liquidity and volume.
- Trading in low volume, low open interest contracts results in wide bid/ask spreads and difficulty having your contracts filled. Look at all the data for a contract, not just the strike and price.
- Monthly Expiration dates typically have better liquidity.
- Multi-legged trades (Common examples are 2-legged vertical spreads or 4-legged iron condors) have more difficulty being filled, especially on bad brokers like Robin Hood. Having very liquid options for all legs is extremely helpful in obtaining timely and well-priced fills, which maximize your potential profits.
- Time in market vs timing the market:
- It is extremely difficult to time the market perfectly. If you wait for the perfect opportunity forever, history has proven you will miss out on gains. Keeping all your money out of the market has proven to be ineffective. Now if there is something serious happening with a stock/the market (like say a new pandemic), don’t go all in. I recommend entering incrementally at dips. If the stock has huge upside potential it may never go down, so it might make sense to partially enter at the current price.
- IMIO selling puts is a great strategy to get into a stock you like, or at least make money off it. I think buying stock in lots of 100 is usually for suckers. Selling an ATM or ITM put (assuming the math works out) on a stock you were going to buy and hold is ALMOST free money.
- I recommend keeping some cash available regardless. If you have a very large account or expect a downturn, hedging with indexes like QQQ, SPY, or VIX or calls/puts may be wise.
- Every trade can't be a winner. You will take some losses, you must get used to it. I don’t like having a realized loss of 1K or more on any trade. However, this will happen, especially with larger accounts.
- As long as you win more often and beat the S&P that year I consider it okay. I’m kind of aggressive, so I consider 20%+ annually good. 30%+ annually is great. 40%+ and I’m dancing. After trading options I am almost baffled by my old belief that 5% annual returns (mostly from dividend ETFs) was “good”. That’s nothing to me now since I’m willing to take risks. Note: While lots of people danced in 2020, realize that’s an insane Bull Run year and is atypical.
- Adhere to your own risk tolerance and never over-extend yourself, especially with margin use. Don’t make huge gambles leaving you uncomfortable. Only gamble with money you are willing to lose.
- My personal strategy is to make safer gains for the year and then enter slightly riskier strategies using those gains. I can be slightly-moderately more aggressive and compound my gains. For me I often sell puts to make money, then when I see a big opportunity I’ll sell a put and buy an OTM or moderately ITM call.
- Understand it’s not safe to try and get rich overnight. However, once you hit big “steps” things may start to snowball. You can enter more positions and take more risks if you choose to.
- For me this when I hit 50k, then 100k. I was able to balance low and moderate risk positions to more significantly grow my account. I’ll even do a high risk thing now and again because my gains can absorb it (assuming I have them).
- I can’t wait to get to 250K, then 500K. I know it’ll take quite a long time, but I am confident I’ll eventually be able to have 500K and (hopefully) 1M in my non-401k trading account with gains and additions from my job. I can only imagine how “dangerous” I will be with that kind of capital.
- If you missed "the next big thing" like AAPL, TSLA, or the time machine I’m building in my basement. Don't get upset, learn from it. Adapt and become a better trader for next time.
- Figure out why a company was so promising, before they mooned. Determine how you would have traded differently in hindsight. Apply those lessons to the next company you believe has long term growth prospects.
- For me that's putting in 1-2.5k towards shares and/or buying LEAPS on it. Depending on my bullishness I may buy “cheap”, fairly far OTM calls. The far OTM options are sort of lottery tickets. If I'm right the (relatively) low cost will have explosive profits; if I'm wrong, they didn't cost that much so it's a calculated loss I’m willing to accept. For more serious bets I’ll buy ITM LEAPS to run PMCCs on. I also like to buy 1-2K in my 401k for very long-term plays.
- The stock market hates uncertainty, it seems to crave the status quo. A shakeup can potential tank a stock, even if it's nothing. With shares you can wait it out, but this can be problematic for options. If you see volatile/uncertain times ahead (politics, disease, manufacturing, earnings, etc.), you might want to reduce your overall portfolio risks or hedge.
Profit Retention / Loss Mitigation - If selling options, it is a viable strategy to close early after a large gain with many DTE left until expiry. See TT videos / strategies on this.
- Don't hold options through earnings unless you literally want to gamble. I like playing on earnings run ups, but that can be risky.
- If you hold options through earnings, IV crush will happen immediately afterwards, devaluing the option. However, if the option is profitable enough, IV crush won’t matter, which will still make money for a call buyer. A sold put sufficiently far OTM will benefit from IV crush, even if the stock dips after slightly bad or lukewarm earnings.
- Don't throw good money after bad. Don't gamble on a recovery if your assumption appears to be wrong or the market is flat out tanking. If you are wrong and still believe in the company, wait twice as long as your original plan (wait for your 2nd entry point vs 1st) before adding to your position.
- Consider using stop losses to lock-in profits on rides up or sometimes use them to prevent losses. Note, stops can be easily triggered in volatile options. Now when I'm up a lot on calls (especially around earnings or large momentum run-ups) I always set stop losses. I have been burned too many times. In December 2020 I didn't set a SL on several thousand dollars of FDX calls I was already up on and I "lost" ~$5K of unrealized gains. If you're up big, don't get too greedy.
- A possible strategy if a stock is on a tear and you have multiple options open: Close some positions (I prefer to do this incrementally if the stock has momentum), but leave 1+ open in case the stock goes into outer space/the floor. Next, set a stop loss with a little buffer below its current movement / range so it doesn't get hit unless the stock falls hard. Finally, watch the stock closely and if it keeps rising, keep moving the stop loss up in little bits incrementally. This will let you keep more profits on a hot streak, but give some protection and secure more gains. It will also help eliminate FOMO if a stock exceeds your expectations.
- Have rules when to roll out, down & out, or up & out. I like TT’s roll at break even or at 1x loss and to always roll for a credit (or for me a very minor cost). Obviously these rules need some monitoring. Know your stocks, the news, and technicals so you don’t jump the gun.
- If you roll early for a credit and you’re right, it’s not the end of the world. You’ll just need to hold longer, which will obviously tie up capital. Sometimes it’s better to tie up some money (especially if you aren’t paying interest) than eating a huge loss.
- Rolling too late can be worse though. I currently have a very underwater FDX put I sold that is over 2x loss, rolling it does almost nothing unless you want to pay a debit or extend it extremely far out.
- On huge options gains, I strongly you recommend taking profits by rolling up/down or incrementally sell your contracts at several different prices (this is why having multiple contracts is nice).
- Rolling up involves selling your initial call, then using a fraction of your proceeds to buy a cheaper, further OTM call with the same expiry; puts are inverse this. When rolling up I like to ensure the new option’s cost is 15-40% of my realized gains. I’ll buy a more or less expensive new optoin based on my convication to the stock and predicted movements. You can also roll up and out to get a further expiry and strike.
- This is monumentally important if you are playing with incredibly high rising stocks or during a short squeeze.
- Sad story time: I completely screwed up when I forgot to roll up, twice, during the GME gamma/short squeeze. I didn’t take my own advice; I didn’t have a real exit or transition plan and I got emotional. It all happened so fast and I was at work; the insanity of the run up and subsequent gamma squeeze caught me off guard. I should’ve clocked out and thought through the situation for 15-30 minutes to form an impromptu plan, then executed trade(s). My moderate risk tolerance coupled with my desire to take profits took over. When the stock partially cratered after a run up, I sold to retain gains. In the heat of the moment I thought the squeeze was squoze and it was going to plummet into the ground and I wasn’t being rational.
- On 1x 4K call I would’ve made an additional 15-25K if I rolled up to a cheaper contract with some of my profits.
- I know I missed out on significantly more with a 2nd call I had. Depending when I rolled it, it would likely have been an additional 25-50k in profits.
- I talked about learning from your mistakes above. This mistake is branded into my brain due to the massive gains I missed out on by not rolling up. I’m furious with myself as I write this 1 week after the GME gamma squeeze, I’m a planner and I didn’t plan. If anything I own is significantly up ever again, I’m rolling up (or at least setting a stop loss). If necessary, I’ll roll up a trade multiple times to keep extracting profits.
- Learn from my mistake so you don’t miss out on gains too. I strongly recommend rolling up when you are up big on a call / roll down when you are up big on a put. This enables you to take profits, stay in the game, and keep extracting more gains.
- If you trade a lot of options, talk to your broker about a discount. I was getting the standard $.50/contract with E-Trade, but I traded over 300 contracts a quarter and was able to get the fee reduced by over $.10 by just asking. I am now doing more spreads and condors, so once my volume gets very high, I’ll ask again.
- If you have a broker that isn’t great and you want to switch, leverage your current trading fees to the new broker. Tell them you’ll move over $### thousand if they beat your current options trading fee per contract.
Trade Planning & Position Management Tips - As you gain experience, start monitoring what kind of Delta, OTM, DTE, etc. you are most profitable with. Use it in your future trades. You'll often see the tasty trade 30-45DTE .3 Delta strategy for selling.
- Before entering a trade, look at rough technicals like resistances and supports to consider your relevant strikes as well as entry/exit points. Look at upcoming earnings & dividend dates as well as stock/market news.
- Consider staggering strikes and expirations for safety and diversity; it’s nice to avoid assignment on 3 puts at once because you used the same strike for all 3.
- Incrementally enter positions on large rises/falls. One of my favor strategies is to buy dips after over reactions. By doing this slowly in large price "steps" it helps combat FOMO and helps you avoid getting slaughtered.
- This will also help you avoid "chasing a falling knife". It also ties into having a plan.
- I set alerts at several predetermined prices and I REALLY try not to enter new trades unless I hit my preset points. It makes me less emotional and usually more effective.
- Don't buy far expiration options with poor liquidity for shorter term plays. I bought 1x GME 1-year+ LEAPS call before the 2021 short squeeze. That was stupid, I should've bought 2-3x 60-120 day calls to have better liquidity. I also paper-handed it and missed out on my lambo.
- If selling options, consider rolling (for a credit) to avoid assignment when it makes sense / meets your plan. Rolling closer to expiration can be a valid strategy to get theta on your side. On the flip side, if the stock moons or plummets it could've been better to roll before it got crazy deep ITM. See rolling “rules” above.
- Covered Calls:
- If a stock has a large movement range, I think it can be worthwhile to wait to open a CC after the last one is closed/expires. I have been more successful waiting for another opportunity vs. opening one immediately on the Monday after the second the last one expires.
- Consider selling covered calls at all time highs/peaks. If you sell a CC and the stock dips significantly, and you think it’s temporary, you can buy to close your CC for a quick profit, then reopen it later.
- If you own Meme stocks, selling covered calls runs the risk of missing out on large gains. On these stocks I typically only sell them further OTM than I normally would or not at all. If I do sell CC on a Meme stock I try to ensure I have 25-100 other shares that won’t be called away.
-Advanced Beginner- Spreads - Spreads (with 2 legs) are neat because they manipulate how delta and theta act. It caps your gains and losses, but you can profit with less stock movement. Try several spreads on a P/L calculator to see for yourself.
- Spreads usually require margin trading.
- Spreads allow you to define max losses (assuming you close before expiration day) and use less capital.
- Experienced traders will open many spreads at identical/similar strikes to heavily profit off movement. Spreads can make you/lose you a lot of money if you are right.
- For example. I could make a $200 premium off a $500 risk trade, max loss would be $300. This is much more effective capital utilization than a naked or cash secured put, however it does not have the same downside protection or “wheel” potential as a sold put. Higher risk, higher reward.
- Vertical Debit spreads: I think of these like mini calls/puts. I personally don’t use them unless calls are outrageously expensive or the break even is absurdly high, but there’s nothing wrong with them. A call debit spread will lower your breakeven and overall cost vs just a call. You can do clever things like making a positive theta call spread if you’re creative. I like doing this since I hate losing money to theta.
- Vertical Credit spreads:
- Very good theta strategy to define downside/upside risks.
- A put credit spread is bullish and allows you to bet on upward movement with less capital and defined losses.
- A call credit spread is a bearish strategy that allows you to bet on downward movement. These are very cool since they allow you to sell calls without selling naked calls, which can ruin you financially. I see selling these as better than buying puts since it’s so much easier to be profitable; to be redundant, Θ rocks.
- https://www.schwab.com/resource-centeinsights/content/reducing-risk-with-credit-spread-options-strategy-0
- I repeat this on purpose: Don't EVER leave short spreads open on expiration day, close them. If you don't close, they better be VERY far from the strike on a non-volatile stock. In after hours a stock can jump/dip below your strike and be exercised without the other leg to protect you. This can lead to massive, life ruining losses. This is not an exaggeration, google this and be scared. It happened to a fair number of people with TSLA. Video explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtVFj9nRRDo&t=315s
- Short Straddle:
Trading Mechanics, Taxes, Market Manipulation - Learn about wash sale rules. They suck and are very easy to activate with options. This will eliminate your ability to write off losses. Over trading can easily cause wash sales. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/washsalerule.asp
- Short attacks:
- Learn to recognize these sketchy attacks by hedges/firms. They manipulate the market, it’s been documented countless times. A common one is rapid short selling, which pushes the price down.
- Short Ladder attacks:
- If you plan well enough and the market doesn’t give up on the stock you may be able to use it as a great opportunity to buy the dip.
- Cramer explains how he intentionally manipulated the market when he ran a hedge fund years ago. Multiple links to the video are below since this video gets pulled often, Cramer / The street never wanted this to go public.
- Plan for taxes if you are up big. You may need to over withhold or contribute to taxes quarterly depending on your situation. https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc306
-Intermediate / Advanced Strategies (work in progress)- You’ll notice many of these strategies inverse one another. Options Strategy Finder This website is great for learning about new strategies, you’ll see many links to it below.
https://www.theoptionsguide.com/option-trading-strategies.aspx Short Strangle / Straddle - Both of these strategies profit from little price movement. I recommend using a P/L calculator to determine BE, profit, etc.
- A straddle sells (or buys) two options at the same expiry and strike.
- A strangle sells (or buys) two options at same expiry with different strikes.
- Both these strategies involved selling a Call and a Put for a credit. Straddle uses ATM legs, strangle uses OTM legs.
- Limited max profits and unlimited risk. Due to the unlimited risk, I am not a fan. However, many people like these a lot.
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/short-strangle.aspx
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/short-straddle.aspx
Iron Condor and Iron Butterflies - These strategies profit from neutral or mostly neutral stock movement. They receive a credit to open and benefit from theta decay. If your stock is range bound, these may be a good choice.
- These are both 4 "legged" trades, so you will have 4 trading fees to enter or exit the trade. A lower cost or zero cost broker shines here. However, “bad” free brokers will give you poor fills, which may not be worth the discount.
- Condors and butterflies have "wings" which are your purchased puts and calls. The wider the wing the higher the max profit/risk. The condor body can be riskier and skinny with a narrow high profit range or wider for a much greater chance of success with lower payout.
- An iron condor is built by combining a put credit spread and a call credit spread with the same expiry.
- An iron condor can be thought of as a modified short strangle with limited risk, and therefore a bit less profit. I prefer defined limited risk.
- The butterfly is similar except instead of a plateau it has a sharp peak. My personal mental note is that a condor looks more like a strangle with wings, while a butterfly looks like a straddle with wings.
- Pay attention to earnings dates when you open these, I have forgotten to check before and it led to bad trades.
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/iron-condor.aspx
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/iron-butterfly.aspx
Long Condor (Debit Call Condor) - The debit version of an Iron Condor. You expect the price to stay inside your defined range. This strategy profits from neutral or mostly neutral stock movement. I’ve never tried this, Iron Condors make more sense to me.
- Limited risk / limited reward.
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/condor.aspx
Short Condor (Credit Call Condor) - Inverse of an Iron Condor. You expect the price to go OUTSIDE your defined range. These are useful when you expect significant price movement. Credit to open.
- Limited risk / limited reward.
- Can be harder to set up. I want to try these, haven’t yet.
- https://www.theoptionsguide.com/short-condor.aspx
Reverse Iron Condor LEAPs - LEAP Options are options that are long term with many DTE, often over a year until expiration. LEAP calls are great for long term growth plays (downtrends with LEAP puts) or simply when you really like a company and can't afford 100 shares. LEAPs (or any "longer term" option) enables you to sell a PMCC or PMCP (below)
PMCC / PMCP - PMCC or PMCP are poor man's covered call (or poor man's covered puts). They are diagonal options often used with purchased LEAPs. You sell a shorter DTE call/put with a further OTM strike than your purchased call/put. For PMCC/PMCPs it is often recommended to recoup your extrinsic value as soon as possible, some recommend with your first call CC or put sale, to ensure you are positive if the option is assigned early. These have a lot of moving parts and strategies. If you buy a barely ITM call/put and sell a nearby strike call/put you run the risk of the purchased option getting "blown by" on large stock movement and ending up with a very negative losing trade. Keeping your purchased LEAP deeper ITM should protect you. Check your initial PMCC using an options calculation to make sure you don't screw up.
- I'm currently tinkering with these myself. So far I like .7-.9 delta call LEAPS with 30-45 DTE calls on my CC. The goal is to hold the LEAP long term, potentially until expiration, and constantly sell calls/puts on it that expire worthless. Typically the call/put is rolled up and out or down and out if it's going to be assigned, unless you don't want your LEAP anymore.
- Some people look at these many sold CC or puts as profits, I look at them as lowering my cost basis until it's zero (or even negative). I have a page in my notebook I write each CC on my NIO LEAP (I Meme stock sometimes). I find it satisfying to slowly see the cost of the original option disappear. When I originally wrote this I had ~2 years left on it and it's 9-10% paid for; that doesn't even count the actual gains the LEAP has.
- TT states this is considered an IV play, which I partially agree with. You want to buy these during low IV times since an IV drop will hurt your LEAP value. I look at them more as a way to sell calls/puts on a high IV company with a lot of price movement and potential upside/downside.
Advanced Orders - Guide to several order types: https://us.etrade.com/knowledge/events/webinars/order-types-from-basic-to-advanced-07162019
- One Triggers Other (OTO):
- Good brokers will allow you to set these up, some will require a desktop to do it. This lets you link one action to another. In programming think of it like an if-then. You’ll tie a buy/sell to another buy/sell
- Setting trailing stops on options is very chaotic since their price movement can be drastic due to volatility. I prefer to set my trailing stop to a stock.
- What I like to do is set a trailing stop on a stock (or just link it to a stock price drop) and have it sell 1 share I own. Then it immediately executes a market order to sell my call. I’ve had good luck doing this with incredibly volatile plays were stop losses aren’t effective. I’ll often have an order saved and ready saved for when a strong run up starts. When my price alerts start blowing up my phone, I’ll immediately hit execute to turn it on.
Disclaimer:
I’m not a financial adviser, I'm actually an engineer. I’m not telling you to invest in a specific stock/option or even use a specific strategy. I’ve outlined and more extensively elaborated on what I personally like. You should test several strategies and find what works best for you.
I'm just a guy who trades (mainly options) part-time for financial gain and fun. I don't claim to be some investing savant.
submitted by CompulsionOSU to thetagang [link] [comments]
Where is Alicia Navarro? Autistic teenager missing from Arizona since 2019 may have been lured away by an internet predator
Who Is Alicia? At 14, Alicia Christina Navarro was a shy, quiet girl who enjoyed playing online games and reading. She achieved good grades at Bourgade Catholic School but struggled with developmental delays and had been diagnosed with high-functioning autism at age 12. The teen also suffered from severe anxiety, for which she was receiving therapy, and also apparently had a weakened immune system. Like many young people with autism, Alicia preferred to keep to a strict routine and didn’t like crowded public spaces. She often bit her shirt or knuckles when she experienced sensory overload. Alicia also frequently wore the same clothing and shoes over and over, including her favorite white sweatshirt that she was wearing the night she vanished, which her mother attributed to her autism. The teenager preferred to eat a limited number of foods, including chicken nuggets and unsalted french fries from McDonald's. Despite her mental health and developmental challenges, Alicia was happy at home and close to her mother, stepfather, and two siblings.
When not at school, Alicia enjoyed playing games and chatting with her friends on Discord, a chat app for gamers. She often stayed up late using her computer. Her mother, Jessica Nunez, stated that she’d once noticed a stranger that Alicia had met online asking for her daughter’s personal information. Nunez quickly corrected the behavior, blocking the man and warning Alicia to never share personal details with people she didn’t know online lest she fall prey to an internet predator. Nunez had also caught Alicia engaged in a text conversation with someone who Nunez believed was older than Alicia “based on the mature content” of their chat. She filed a police report, but nothing came of it and authorities were unable to identify the responsible parties in either situation. Nunez believes that Alicia’s autism made her more trusting than other teens, and thinks that Alicia may not have heeded her warnings. At 14, photos of Alicia depict a girl who appears much younger; she stood 4’5” and weighed only 95 pounds. Her childlike appearance, shy demeanor, and mental health diagnoses may have made her more vulnerable, Nunez believes.
Nunez has noted that Alicia had undergone personality changes in the months leading up to her disappearance, including a sudden and intense interest in the comic book series Ironman and its ‘Demon in a Bottle’ arc; her mother purchased one of the books for her prior to her disappearance and the comic vanished along with Alicia. She had also begun wearing heavily perfumed body spray, despite her usual aversion to strong smells, and had begged her mother to purchase concealer and an open-backed shirt (unusually risque for the shy teen) for her. After she and her friends met up with an unnamed boy at the mall one day, Alicia gushed to her mother that he was “quite fit” and became interested in fitness workouts and dietary supplements.
Before she vanished, Alicia’s parents discovered a hole in her bedroom window screen that she claimed had been created by a bird. It was apparent to them, however, that the hole had been created from the inside. Nunez suspects that Alicia may have used the hole to pass notes to someone on the outside, and in a photograph of Alicia’s bedroom window, a ladder is visible on the ground below her window. Less than two weeks before she disappeared, Alicia messaged her 20-year-old friend on Oregon on Discord and informed him that she’d sold her beloved Xbox gaming console and that she had a new boyfriend. She also brought up learning how to play electric guitar and suggested that she might join the friend’s band. However, Alicia's friends reported that Alicia seemed to lead two lives: one in the real world, where she was reserved and shy, and another on the internet, where she was more gregarious. They indicated that Alicia frequently exaggerated stories or made statements that were untrue. While this is not uncommon for teenagers, it has made determining the veracity of some of Alicia's statements to her friends difficult.
The Day of Alicia’s Disappearance On September 14th, 2019, Alicia spent most of the evening in her upstairs bedroom, ostensibly gaming and chatting with friends online as she often did on the weekends. It was only five days before her 15th birthday. Despite her anxiety about the new school year, she and Nunez had spent the day running errands together and Alicia was reportedly in good spirits, “smiling and laughing” with her mother.
Around 1 am, Alicia came downstairs for a glass of water. Nunez was downstairs, waiting for her husband to come home from work. Alicia reportedly asked her mother why she was still awake and then returned to her bedroom. That night, Nunez and Alicia's two siblings fell asleep while Alicia's stepfather dozed off on the couch in front of the TV. No one noticed Alicia leaving the house.
The next morning, September 15th, Nunez awoke at 7:00 am to find the back door slightly ajar. She assumed that her husband had accidentally left it open, but he told her that he had not been in the backyard the previous evening. Nunez became concerned and rushed upstairs to find Alicia’s bedroom empty. Her laptop, a silver Apple Macbook, and her silver iPhone 6 were missing, but the chargers for both devices had been left behind. She had left behind the laptop she used for school as well as a desktop computer that she used to play online games. Also missing were a bottle of perfume and an expensive Ironman comic book that she’d apparently begged her mother for prior to disappearing. She had left a note behind, penned in her signature scrawl: “I ran away. I will be back. I swear. I’m sorry.” In the backyard, Nunez discovered chairs had been dragged outside and stacked against the brick wall. In the vicinity and on the chairs were footprints that matched Alicia’s sneakers. It appeared that Alicia had packed her items into a small black backpack and used the chairs to climb over two walls in the backyard. Her mother noted that doing so would have helped Alicia avoid being captured on their neighbor’s security cameras. That’s where the trail went cold. For all that Glendale PD and her parents could determine, it seemed as though Alicia had climbed out of her backyard and then simply vanished into the night.
Glendale Police Department interviewed all registered sex offenders within a one-mile radius of Alicia’s home but to no avail. They also stated that they were unable to trace either her laptop or cell phone as both devices were turned off. Authorities have been unclear as to exactly why they’re unable to trace Alicia’s phone and laptop. Two weeks after her disappearance, police took her gaming desktop as evidence; Nunez has indicated that authorities have searched chat logs from that computer and may have also accessed her social media profiles (such as her Discord and Facebook pages) for clues. Alicia’s mother has also stated that “these people were smart not to talk on the computer”, meaning that whoever Alicia was contacting may have done so using less-traceable means. It’s not clear whether or not authorities have gained access to her social media pages and online gaming profiles, but Alicia’s social media hasn’t been active since she vanished in 2019. PrincessandPenguin (spelling unclear) is one of the usernames that she’s used in the past, but other screennames are being withheld by law enforcement due to the ongoing investigation.
What Happened to Alicia? There has been little headway in the investigation since Alicia vanished in September of 2019. Nunez believes that her daughter was the victim of an internet predator who groomed the teen online, perhaps via some of the games that she frequently played. She thinks that someone may have convinced Alicia to meet up with them in real life and then abducted her. Alicia’s autism and her related lowered inhibition could have made her more vulnerable to online predators. The items that Alicia brought with her may lend credence to this theory. Alicia left home with only the clothing on her back (her favorite white sweatshirt, a bleached denim skirt, and high-top Vans sneakers) and with minimal personal effects. She brought both her iPhone and Macbook when she left home but didn’t bring the chargers for either item, indicating that she might have not planned to be gone for long or perhaps had been told that whoever she was meeting up with had chargers for her cell phone and laptop that she could borrow. Interestingly, as another Redditor noted in a comment on another Alicia-related post in this sub, the Ironman comic that she brought (worth over 200 dollars) contains a plotline that features the protagonist scaling a wall to break out of prison. Could this have possibly inspired Alicia’s early-morning escape from her family’s home? Is it possible that she was planning to meet up with someone who convinced her to bring the comic along? Nunez has stated that she never saw Alicia actually reading the comic book which lends credence to the theory that she may have purchased it for someone else. Alicia also brought with her the new perfume and makeup, which may suggest that she’d been groomed into an online romance with whoever she was potentially planning to meet the night of the 14th. Was it someone who posed as a same-age peer? Or was Alicia, like so many other young girls groomed by sexual predators, convinced that an older man displaying an interest in her was flattering, a sign of ‘coolness’ and maturity?
Alicia’s friends at school have stated that she was carrying around a ‘burner phone’, likely a cheap cell phone that can be purchased at gas stations or chain stores like Walmart, in the weeks prior to her disappearance. It seems plausible that the burner phone may have been given to her by whoever Alicia planned to meet up with the night she went missing. However, Alicia did not tell her friends what the phone was for or how she’d obtained it. Cheap burner phones are often used by children who are groomed and exploited by adults as they allow the victim’s usual phone to remain free of evidence like text messages and photos that may otherwise raise red flags for caregivers. Another one of Alicia’s friends has stated that Alicia had mentioned running away to California only days before her disappearance and even invited the friend to join her. The friend didn't think that Alicia was serious and didn't tell any adults about the comment until after Alicia had vanished. The aforementioned burner phone (if it indeed existed) was not recovered amongst Alicia’s belongings, meaning that she likely took it with her when she left the house.
Now, a year and five months since Alicia vanished without a trace, Nunez continues to press law enforcement to investigate the teenager’s disappearance as an abduction. She believes that Alicia was lured from the house that night in 2019 by a predator and is possibly being held against her will. She also feels that Alicia’s disappearance should not have been initially dismissed as a simple runaway case, especially given her small stature, younger appearance, and autism. Nunez has also made it clear that Alicia’s disappearance likely would have been treated differently, and with more urgency, if she had been a middle-class white teenager.
Prevailing theory amongst internet sleuths and Alicia’s own family still holds that she was lured away from home by someone she met online. Law enforcement’s actions, such as confiscating her desktop computer and combing Discord chat logs, may indicate that they too suspect the tech-savvy teen was convinced to leave home by an internet predator. It wouldn’t be the first time that a vulnerable autistic teenager was lured into danger by an online predator. In 2017, a 16-year-old autistic Baltimore high schooler was found in a local apartment complex after she used a web-based chat app to communicate with an older man. And in 2018, an 18-year-old woman with autism was kidnapped from her Arkansas home and taken to rural Washington state by a 50-year-old man she’d met online. The perpetrator had attempted to befriend over 8,000 other children via social media prior to kidnapping the 18-year-old. Given how well-versed in technology Alicia was, and how comfortable she was using social media to communicate with people she’d never met in real life, it seems plausible that the teenager could have been coerced into leaving home by someone like the aforementioned predators: pedophiles who prey on vulnerable youth with few real-world friends, who they know can be easily manipulated into doing their bidding.
Since Alicia’s disappearance in the fall of 2019, there have been several non-credible sightings of the teenager, including one at a gas station and another in which Alicia was supposedly wandering a homeless encampment. One supposed sighting at a park a mile from Alicia’s home brought Nunez rushing to the scene; witnesses claimed that a girl matching Alicia’s description had been sighted holding hands with a dark-skinned man with neck tattoos. A 25-year-old man matching that description would later be caught in a police sting designed to catch internet predators. He was indicted for “luring of a minor” and “attempted sex conduct with a minor”, but it’s unknown if he was ever seriously investigated in Alicia’s disappearance. Other witnesses have cropped up occasionally with leads but disappeared after offering little to no information, perhaps fearing for their own safety. The case was turned over to the FBI in 2020, but it’s unknown if federal involvement has continued.
Alicia is now 16 years old. She was last seen wearing a white sweatshirt with multi-colored writing on it, a bleached denim overall skirt, and high-top Vans sneakers. She is a Hispanic female with brown hair and brown eyes. At the time of her disappearance, Alicia wore braces. She has a scar on her left knuckle. At the time of her disappearance, she stood 4’5” and weighed approximately 95 pounds. She enjoys online gaming and reading and dislikes large crowds. Her favorite food is McDonald's chicken nuggets and unsalted french fries. Alicia needs medication that she does not have with her. Due to the circumstances involved, she is considered an endangered missing person.
https://charleyproject.org/case/alicia-christian-navarro https://coppercourier.com/story/alicicia-navarro-missing-glendale/ https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/mother-missing-teenager-autism-alicia-navarro-fears-she-was-lured-n1167191 https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/glendale-police-family-held-news-conference-one-year-after-alicia-navarro-disappeared
submitted by -lemon-pepper- to UnresolvedMysteries [link] [comments]
Considering your first HOTAS? More comprehensive into...
I thought the current “considering your first HOTAS guide” was lacking, so I decided to update a post I made over 5 years ago (mods add this to sticky? :D)
I’ve tried to be somewhat objective in here, but overall, this post represents
my opinion. I’m not a hard core flight simmer (though I used to be an IRL pilot).. Just a guy who enjoys flying WWI, WW2, modern, and space games that started with
Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe with a
Gravis Phoenix when he was a kid. I do have experience with some of this gear, but a lot of it is information I’ve collected over the last 8 years or so of trolling various posts and places on the internet. If you have more accurate information than what I’ve posted here, please reply and I’ll happily update what I’ve written. This is also a
very high level overview, so please keep that in mind.
With that in mind, lets get started. You’re considering your first HOTAS…
First, forget what you think a HOTAS or joystick should cost based on some other item (like a console controller or cell phone). They’re not either of those, and they don’t compare for a variety of reasons. A joystick is an electromechanical device that is subject to a huge amount of force when gaming. Key word being
mechanical. Good, strong, smooth mechanical devices cost money. As such, good sticks are expensive, though not prohibitively so. You don't need to start with a $1,000 setup. But there's reasons you might not want to start with the cheapest things you can, either.
Some issues you should consider:
- Deadzone. That is, a "dead" area around the centre where you get no reaction from movement of the stick. Deadzones are bad. A good stick should have zero deadzone. Some people might tell you this is because a stick uses potentiometers and any stick that uses pots will have a deadzone. This is wrong. Good potentiometers require zero deadzone.
- Quality. Better sticks are just built better. Unlike mice, a joystick is a mechanical device that gets a lot more abuse when gaming. Cheap sticks don't stand up to abuse very well. The best quality sticks can last 15 years and still function like the day they were bought. Cheaper sticks sometimes don't even make it 6 months before they start to develop issues. Cheaper sticks sometimes even have buttons or axis that are DOA or don't work properly after a very short period of time.
- Precision. Cheap sticks generally have poorer internal components. They're not precise. They don't calibrate well, they'll develop 'spiking' over time (spiking is a quick and uncommanded "blip" in the stick's motion). Expensive sticks use significantly higher quality internals, and the motion on them is much smoother. This means it's easier to game with. Imagine using a mouse that would randomly move your cursor a couple of inches every now and then. That's what joystick spiking is like.
- Gimbals. This is really what you’re paying for in a joystick and is the single most important part of it. This is the mechanical device that the stick grip pivots on. Cheap sticks use poor gimbal designs (cup and ball) that have a high contact area and are often prone to stiction and/or other issues. More expensive sticks use better engineered, stronger, and better built gimbals. See this excellent post here by TrueWeevie about gimbals.
- Expensive sticks have better control software. Far, FAR too many people underestimate the usefulness of a joystick's control software. This software lets you do things like assign keymaps for programs, macros, custom sensitivity and response curves, axis reassignment or axis inversion, and depending on the software other more complex functions. However this can be somewhat mitigated with programs like Joystick Gremlin and VJoy. But you can do some really cool stuff with joystick software.
- Expensive sticks have better resale value. You can probably reclaim 80-90% of what you spent on a good stick or HOTAS if it's lightly used and you decide you don't like it. I've seen 5 year old CH gear go for a mere $20-$40 less than brand new stuff. Right now (2020-01-28) second hand quality gear is easily selling for MSRP.
A quick note on prices: This stuff is very subject to regional pricing, some of it extremely so. Don't be surprised if you go on Amazon or whatever and see different prices listed than what I have down here. For the most part I've used CAD regional pricing for what I could find around where I live as a guide. I’ve also used pre-2020 pricing history so people get an idea for what this stuff should ACTUALLY cost, since the last 12 months have seen a MASSIVE spike in HOTAS costs. It’s up to you to decide if the current “premium” is worth it. As for budget and what you “should” spend, my advice is to get the best system you can afford. Almost across the board more expensive systems are better quality, and that curve is exponential. You’ll never regret buying a better quality HOTAS.. But you may regret buying a cheap one.
Also note that, as with any mass produced device, there WILL be failures across all the manufactures. Buying a $1,000 HOTAS doesn’t guarantee you’re not going to have issues. HOWEVER, it DOES guarantee that you’re significantly less likely to. Some of the cheaper HOTAS systems have an extremely high failure rate.
Note that this is also not an exhaustive list. I’ve tried to be as comprehensive as I can here, but it’s impossible for me to cover everything. I’ve also decided to ONLY cover things that are currently in production (so you won’t see any of the old Saitek stuff on this list). I’m also not going to talk about very high end enthusiast gear like Winwing and Brunner, as these generally aren’t even considered by first-time HOTAS buyers (and this post is long enough as it is).
Under $100 Bracket
- Logitech Extreme 3D: Cheap stick. Low quality pots. Basically the same stick Logitech has been making for 20 years with minor cosmetic changes. Common to develop spiking and drifting. However they do seem to work poorly longer than many cheap sticks work at all. My 25 year old gameport Wingman Extreme still works.. Just poorly. TBF, some work quite well for years.
- Thrustmaster T16000m: Plasticy build quality. Very stiff stick (IMO). Uses magnetic sensors on the X and Y axis which is a HUGE plus, makes the stick very accurate and not subject to calibration issues. Uses a potentiometer on the Zr (twist) axis with very weak stops. Not uncommon for the twist to break under… the rigours of combat. Prior to the Gladiator NXT was probably the best lower-cost stick on the market. Main drawback is the VERY limited buttons on the stick itself.
- Thrustmaster HOTAS X/One/4: Personally not a fan, as it has all the problems of a cheap joystick crammed into a HOTAS form-factor. Maybe only useful to see if you like the HOTAS setup.. but keep in mind it's a sub-$100 HOTAS when "proper" HOTAS systems start around $160. For a full HOTAS that cheap, you are compromising on a lot. Is not compatible with TM's TARGET software. Very poor component quality across the board. Early failures (< 6 months) are common. If you’re a console gamer, this is one of your only two options (the other being the Hori). If you're seriously considering purchasing one of these be ready for early failures. DO NOT buy one of these used unless you can test it first.
$100 - $200 Bracket
- Flashfire/Gamestrix/Titanwolf/Asia-Games: Ok, I’m lumping a bunch of different products under the same entry here, because they’re all built by the same OEM. You’ll find a throttle unit, a Defender Cobra M5 joystick copy, and a Gladiator Mk.II(?) joystick copy, sold individually or as a system (generally) under $200 USD. These are not the systems that were built under the VKB name or by the VKB design team. They’re the same molds, but use much, much cheaper components with lower resolution electronics. Reports are that they’re not overly reliable. But they’re also not overly expensive. There are some minor differences between the various models, so if you’re considering one, read all the literature so you know what you’re getting. See this discussion here for some more comprehensive information. Opinion seems to place the overall quality of these to compete with the T.Flight HOTAS.
- Saitek/Logitech x52: With the Pro available, don’t bother. It's cheaper than the Pro (not by a lot), but the Pro improves on it in some pretty important ways.
- Saitek/Logitech x52 Pro: Old design. Generally requires magnet mod to make it a really decent stick. Known for throttle quadrant failures. On the plus side, old design improved over the original x52. Pro has more metal (internal) construction and they seem to hold up decently enough over time. Personally I always liked the aesthetics of this one.
- Saitek/Logitech x55/56: System is on par for the cost if you get one that works. Very large stick with sub-optimal button layout if you have small hands. Throttle unit is better in this regard, however the throttle unit has some design flaws that increase the chance of failure over time. Anecdotal evidence seems to suggest components in the system start to consistently fail around 600-700 hours of use.
Note about Saitek/Logitech: Be wary of any Saitek branded X52/x55 and very early logitech X55s. Saitek under Mad-Catz had terrible quality control, with issues ranging from button ghosting, buttons not working, sticks DOA, throttle issues, and other problems. I’ve seen multiple posts from different people having to RMA x55 HOTAS’s 3 times before they got one that worked. Others got one that worked out of the box. If you’re looking at one of these, go with the newer Logitech x56. It doesn’t fix the throttle design issues but the QC is somewhat better.
- VKB Gladiator NXT: Probably the best lower cost stick currently available. Easily the best stick on the cost:quality ratio before you move into enthusiast level gear. All axis use contactless sensors, good build quality, great quality electronics, and you’re not getting price-gouged since you buy them from VKB directly. There’s a reason it’s the most recommended stick on /hotas. Grip is available in two flavours to suit two different price options. Go with the more expensive one if you can, but the less expensive option is still great.
$300 - < $500 Bracket
- CH Products HOTAS: Must be bought in pieces (throttle, stick, pedals). Near ancient design that uses potentiometers and 8-bit electronics across the board, so accuracy suffers. Probably one of the most reliable HOTAS systems ever made. CH’s parent, APEM, builds stuff for industrial, agriculture, and military use. CH gear is made out of the same stuff. Their gear lasts forever (20+ years, no joke). Looks like “cheap plastic” -made out of fibre reinforced nylon polymer. Looks like something “your Dad gamed with” -because he did. Throttle unit has a fully analog thumbstick that’s great for 6DoF. Excellent control software. All components have some odd ergonomics some users don't like. No twist on any CH stick. Uses pots, so still requires re-calibration every now and then, but they're excellent quality pots, so you won't run into the spiking and drift issues common to cheaper sticks. Very subject to regional pricing and difficult to find outside of North America. Other than the throttle (Mexico), made in the USA for my American friends that like to buy local ;).
- Thrustmaster FCS HOTAS: A package containing the T16000m (above) with the TWCS throttle. By all accounts, the TWCS throttle is a good buy. Decent quality with a good number of functions (including a rocker that can be used in place of a rudder). Can “stick” a bit, requiring lubrication.
- Thrustmaster TCS ‘Airbus’ Edition: The stick is a T16000m with a single button moved to a different location. Changes are cosmetic only. The throttle hasn’t been out very long so not too many reports on its overall quality. Modeled after the A320 throttle quadrant. Cool if you fly the A320 in sims. Terrible (IMO) if you fly anything else. VERY limited functionality on the throttle.
>$500 Bracket
- Thrustmaster Warthog: Stick licensed copy of the one in the A-10C Thunderbolt II aeroplane. Very sturdy exterior build on the stick -where it doesn’t really matter. Not only is the gimbal plastic, it uses the same design as the much cheaper T16000m with a single centering spring. Has a heavy throw weight and suffers from stiction issues. No twist. Grip is nice and works well when paired with a better gimbal. Throttle OTOH is well regarded and well designed. Thrustmaster seems to be trying to position the Warthog as a “high end” stick simply by pricing it similar to better sticks. I've watched the price of this thing creep up over the years by about 80%. Better suited to jet/DCS/BMS sims than WWII or space sims.
- VKB Gunfighter Line: The Gunfighter Line has 4 different grips available on the same base. Excellent quality gear across the board. Uses all-metal gimbals that allow a degree of customization. Interchangeable grips.
- Virpil: Newer company. Manufactures high quality grips, bases, and throttle units. Offers two different bases (WarBRD for desktop use and T50 for floor mount) with 5 different grips available. All but one grip (T-50CM2) are available with twist. Recommendation is the T-50CM2 or Constellation Alpha grips, as the other two available are much more limited in functionality. High quality all metal gimbal.
For most intents and purposes, VKB and Virpil are very similar in design, function, and quality. My research leads me to say that VKB probably has the edge, but not by much.
Others
As I said, this was a non-exhaustive list. There are quite a few others. If you encounter one that doesn’t seem common, do your research. Read the literature and ask. If it seems a lot cheaper than the "main" manufactures above.. there's probably a reason for it.
My Personal Recommendations
- Best Budget Stick: Gladiator NXT.
- Best Budget HOTAS: Gladiator NXT paired with a TWCS or CH Pro Throttle.
In either case, you can sub a Gladiator NXT with a T16000m if you’re really price conscious.
Throttle Units
Quick overview of the various throttle units that are independently available.
- Thrustmaster TWCS Throttle: Good unit on par for the price (pre-COVID screwage). Not the best out there but not the worst either. Only consistent complaint is the slide motion can catch and may require periodic lubrication.
- Thrustmaster TCA Quadrant Airbus Edition: See my earlier comments. Seems great if you fly an A320, extremely limited if you want to do anything else.
- CH Pro Throttle: Ancient CH product like everything else they make. Lasts forever. Has a thumbstick that’s great for 6DoF. Like the TWCS, I like it because you can access all the buttons without removing your hand from it, making it great for VR. Requires periodic recalibration.
- Warthog Throttle: Can be bought separate from the stick (if you can find it). Generally regarded as the better part of the Warthog HOTAS. I’ve heard most people aren’t fond of the mouse stick on it, but that seems to be the only consistent complaint.
- Virpil CM3: IIRC this is actually the 4th iteration of the Virpil throttle in a very short period of time. I own an original Mongoose Throttle (the big one with the detents). It’s a huge chunk of very high quality metal that has worked flawlessly so far. I can’t say much about the CM3, but people seem to like them. Looks like Virpil solved the detent problem (original Mongoose ones tended to fail).
- VKB: They’re coming out with one. It’s not out yet.
What about pedals?
If you don't have a twist stick they're pretty much required. Even if you have a twist stick I can't recommend pedals enough. They give you far more control and feel much more natural, not to mention you don't end up killing your wrist over longer gaming sessions.
- Saitek/Logitech Pro Flight Rudder Pedals: Honestly, I don't know a lot about them. Better suited to Saitek's civvie flight sim line. Retail for around $150. Same internals as the PRO Flight Combat Pedals, but different layout.
- Thrustmaster T-Flight Rudder Pedals (TFRP): Alternative to Saitek pedals. Lightweight build. 3-axis, potentiometer based. Works with TARGET software. Prior to 2020 retailed for around $150 USD. Compatible with some console systems.
- Thrustmaster TPR Pedals: Not overly common. Expensive for Thrustmaster. Seem to be good build quality (lots of metal) with a very realistic feel (for GA aircraft). Apparently quite heavy -commonly suggested upgrade is locking wheels for your desk chair.
- CH Pro Pedals: Good quality pedals, like all of CH's stuff. Smooth but stiff motion with very abrupt centering. Nicknamed "nutcracker" because of how close together the pedals are (8" on centre). If you're thick in the thighs this could be a problem. Otherwise on-par with the rest of CH's gear. Come with stops so you can use them as gas/break in car or tank sims or something (I use mine in American Truck Simulator). Compatible with CH's software. Retail for around $160.
- VKB T-rudder MkIV pedals: Responsive pedals with a simple push down action (adjustable), but with no toe pedals. All metal, well constructed and not insanely priced. A mid-tier step between Saitek/CH Pedals and MFG or Slaw device.
- Virpil WarBRD and ACE Pedals: WarBRD are single axis, whereas the ACE are 3 axis (toe brakes). Differences between ACE versions are largely cosmetic. $300-$550 CAD.
- MFG Crosswind: Very high quality pedals. Second only to Slaw Device pedals. Retail around $500-$600.
- Slaw Device Pedals: Generally considered the best pedals on the market. Very expensive, but hand-made, all metal. Extremely high quality. Around $700 IIRC.
Twist vs. No Twist
This is largely an issue of personal preference, and there's valid points of view for it either way. I'll outline a couple based on my own experience:
Pros of Twist:
- Saves desk real-estate.
- Twist sticks are widely available by comparison.
- Don't need to invest in pedals.
- Arguably easier to use.
Cons of Twist:
- Axis bleed is a real issue.
- Torquing motion is unnatural for the wrist, and it can start to ache after long gaming sessions.
- Not as accurate as pedals.
- Generally leads to weaker sticks (not for Virpil/VKB -design is different than less expensive sticks).
- Can exasperate calibration issues.
After switching to a non-twist stick and getting pedals I'll never go back, but again, personal preference.
Calibration vs. No Calibration
There seems to be some confusion around what calibration is and when/what requires it, so here’s a real quick primer. Calibration is the act of resetting the interpreted centre and range of motion on a potentiometer using software. It will periodically be required on any axis that uses a potentiometer. No exceptions. If you’re using a stick or throttle that uses POTs and it starts to drift slightly/is slightly off center, or doesn’t quite move through it’s full range, that’s not necessarily a problem with the stick! The axis may just require calibration. This should always be your first course of action if you start to experience joystick drift or throttle range issues. I see multiple posts a month where people think their (T.Flights, specifically) are broken and all they really require is a recalibration.
Sticks and throttles that do not use potentiometers may require a setup through their control software to “learn” the range of motion and center of the magnetic sensors, but this should only be required when the software is first installed and when the device firmware is updated.
Compatibility and Control Map
Another common post I see from gamers new to HOTAS systems is around the issue of compatibility (particularly since the release of MSFS2020 and Star Wars: Squadrons). It’s common these days to plug a KB/M or console controller into a game and have everything mapped out, all the axis properly mapped and all the buttons assigned. Due to the massive variation in HOTAS gear, it is not uncommon for there to be incomplete or no maps at all for popular titles for certain HOTAS systems. This does not mean the gear or game is incompatible! It means you need to take some time, go through the control map screen in the game, and map the buttons and axis yourself. Some games may also have some odd programming traits that means they won't recognize your equipment -for example, X4 didn't like joystick or throttle axis that didn't have single-letter names (such as Rx, Zx, etc.) Quirks like this mean you may have to spend some time in the HOTAS control software tweaking a custom configuration. Do not expect your HOTAS gear to be fully and properly mapped by default in the vast majority of games.
A note on HOTAS Reviews
I hope this isn’t too controversial to say, but the vast majority of HOTAS reviews online, both written and video (at least the ones that are easy to find), frankly suck. They’re by people who don’t have a lot of experience with the gear or games. If you’re looking for a good and accurate review of HOTAS equipment, try to seek out pieces from people who actually play simulation games, and ideally who have used multiple pieces of equipment. I say this because those kind of people will be a lot more familiar with how a HOTAS has to actually function to be useful, including things like the button layout, rather than just the aesthetics or perceived build quality.
A few things to watch out for:
- Any review that doesn’t say anything about downsides to the equipment. For the type of HOTAS gear us plebs can afford, pretty much everything has a couple of negatives. I could write a paragraph on the stuff that annoys me about my Virpil throttle unit, for example, despite the fact it’s overall an excellent piece of equipment. A good reviewer should state what they don’t like about the gear.
- Any review that repeats marketing points: I see this commonly in written reviews. The reviewer will talk about some “feature” the device has and how awesome it is, and it’s pulled straight from the website of the manufacturer without any explanation or commentary. Some marketing fluff is actually accurate, but a good reviewer should also tell you why it’s good and possibly explain what it does. The reason it gets left out is because the reviewer actually doesn't know what it does or why it is or is not important.
- Any HOTAS review (usually “best HOTAS of…” lists) that leaves off major brands: Anyone who’s been around for a while knows that article to which I’m referring. Like my own post here, you can’t cover everything, but when a compilation article leaves off brands that have been a staple in simming for 30 years and gushes over one or two brands specifically, I’d question it’s source and motivation.
There’s a few Youtubers that make really awesome HOTAS review content. I’m not going to post anyone specifically (feel free to do so in comments) because I don’t want to leave anyone out, but if you look at their channels you’ll get a good idea for the types of games they play and equipment they use. I’d trust someone who plays a lot of different sims and has reviewed lots of different equipment over the years over a much more popular channel that has a one-off review of an Extreme 3D as their only point of comparison. Check the channel (or ask). I found Youtube algorithms are really hit-and-miss when you search for reviews, and the way the algorithms work doesn’t mean you’re going to get the best results at the top.
That's all for now. I'll update this post periodically as required.
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This Week at Bungie - 11/5/2020
Source:
https://www.bungie.net/en/News/Article/49751 This week at Bungie, we’re beginning our descent to Europa.
Every release, we have a long conversation about what we should show players leading up to launch, and what we should leave for players to discover. We want to build up the sense of wonder as a new Season or expansion makes its approach without spoiling everything that’s coming. With just a week to go before launch, we’ve almost reached our destination.
Video Link
Our Beyond Light Launch Trailer went live last week. A ViDoc, exploring Beyond Light and Season of the Hunt, is available for your viewing pleasure. We’ve released our Season of the Hunt calendar to help you plan out your days for the next few months.
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All that’s left is a quick preview of patch notes and a maintenance timeline. After that, we leave the rest to you.
It’s All in the Patch
Over the last few weeks, our goals have been to set expectations. We’ve covered the Destiny Content Vault, upcoming Sandbox changes, Gambit tuning, and more. These updates aren’t mind-blowing or overly game changing, they’re just nice little morsels to chew on in the final days leading up to launch. In any case, we hope you like the following quality of life appetizers before your meal is delivered on November 10.
Archives
Beginning November 10, two new kiosks will be available in the Tower. First up, the Quest Archive will be found next to the Postmaster. Our hope is that this removes some of the confusion when trying to track down the odd quest that you previously discarded. Additionally, this will be the place for any veteran players to pick up the New Light Quest on November 10, if they have a strong desire to experience new player tutorials and the (re-)introduction to the Cosmodrome.
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Next up, the Monument to Lost Lights Exotic Archive will be found by the Vault. Here, players may acquire various Exotics and Legendary Pinnacle/Pursuit weapons that were once available through now-retired quests. As many of these Exotics were tied to lengthy quests or difficult objectives, we wanted to make sure their prices reflected those previous efforts. Players will need an amount of Glimmer, destination materials, masterworking materials, and an Exotic Cipher or Ascendant Shard in order to purchase the Exotic or Legendary which they desire. We’re also introducing a currency, Spoils of Conquest, which can only be acquired when completing raids. This currency will be required for Exotics previously tied to Vaulted raids.
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In the past, Exotic Ciphers were very limited in nature. While you can expect one to be available as part of the Season Pass, Xur will also offer a quest to earn one Exotic Cipher on a weekly cadence.
Now, let's move on to some traditional patch notes...
Crucible
- Trials of Osiris
- Trials of Osiris Power level requirement increased to 1210.
- Added ADEPT weapons and weapon mods to Flawless chest rewards.
- Additional information here (link TWAB).
- Maps
- Added physics blockers to some out-of-bounds areas on Altar of Flame.
- Added physics blockers to some out-of-bounds areas on Exodus Blue.
- Added physics blockers to some out-of-bounds areas on Cauldron.
Player Identity
- Login screens now have a dark background.
- Updated the full-screen menus to have a dark background style.
- Player waypoints now display Season Rank, HUD waypoints.
- Added toggle functionality to the character screen, allowing the player to make a choice between Light and Dark subclasses.
- Character screen visuals updated depending on player choice between Light and Dark.
Character Creation
- Changed selection from "Male" & "Female" to "Masculine" & "Feminine."
- Guardian head and hair models have been replaced with improved versions.
- Several color swatches have been changed to better represent the applied color.
- Player’s previous head selections are still used.
Misc
- Fixed a bug that prevented online friends from showing up in the roster on Stadia for players with more than 100 friends.
- Fixed a bug that occasionally prevented players from earning progress on bounties when joining an activity in progress.
- This most notably impacted Iron Banner bounties and could cause players to have their Artifact Power bonus enabled during Iron Banner matches.
A few Sandbox changes that we missed in our Sandbox preview
- Traveler's Chosen
- Reduced muzzle flash intensity.
- Point of the Stag
- Increased Point of the Stag's Max Power Level to 1310.
- Divinity
- Fixed a bug that prevented some weapons from dealing precision damage to the Divinity cage (e.g. Eriana's Vow).
- Hunter Dodge
- Increased Hunter's Dodge cooldown by a few seconds.
- (E.g. Tier 4, old cooldown: 22 sec. New cooldown: 26 sec.)
- Anti-Champion Mods
- Anti-barrier rounds will now penetrate Taken Phalanx shields.
- All Anti-Champion mods have been shifted to armor, rather than taking a weapon mod slot.
- Orbs of Light have been changed to Orbs of Power as they can now be consumed by Light and Dark subclasses.
Before we end our patch note preview, we do want to call out the collectors among you who have been talking about the impending removal of Expired Ramen Coupons from your inventories. We know this one stings a bit. It’s a byproduct of us cleaning up inventory systems and doing general maintenance.
We want to a provide a parting gift before these coupons are tossed into the bin. These coupons can’t be redeemed for spicy ramen, but they can decorate your desktop for as long as you desire.
[4k – SPICY RAMEN COUPONS]
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…and there we have it. Full patch notes will be released on Tuesday around launch time. Stay tuned!
Novembrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
With a new expansion coming next week, we also have a fresh update coming to Bungie Store! We’re entering the holiday season, so it’s a pretty good time to start gift shopping for your favorite Guardians out there in the world.
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Starting November 9, upgrade your arsenal of collectibles and gifts at Bungie Store with new exclusive products and free in-game emblems with purchase, including the Destiny 2: Beyond Light Original Soundtrack!
Cosmic Alignment (Available November 9 through December 4, 2020)
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Between Stars (Available November 9 through February 9, 2021)
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Shattered Harmony (Available November 9 with purchase of Destiny 2: Beyond Light Original Soundtrack)
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Follow @BungieStore on Twitter for more deals and discounts to be announced every Friday in Novembrrrr from The Drifter, The Exo Stranger and Variks.
Let’s Talk Maintenance and Pre-Loads
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Next Monday, November 9, Destiny 2 will go offline for an extended maintenance period. We want to give everyone ample time to download Destiny 2 Update 3.0.0. Our teams are prepping for the launch day assault on our servers. Destiny Player Support has the full timeline for maintenance, downloads, and more. Read up, spread the word, and get ready for Beyond Light.
This is their report.
UPDATE 3.0.0.1
Next Monday, maintenance for Update 3.0.0.1 will begin. Below is a timeline of events:
- November 9, 3:30 PM PST (2330 UTC): Background maintenance for Update 3.0.0.1 will begin.
- November 9, 4:00 PM PST (0000 UTC): In preparation for downtime, players will be removed from activities and will be required to download a small update before logging in again.
- November 9, 6:50 PM PST (0250 UTC): Sign-on for Destiny 2 will be disabled.
- November 9, 7:00 PM PST (0300 UTC): Destiny 2 will be brought offline for expected maintenance. Players will be removed from activities and won't be able to log back into Destiny 2 until 9 AM PST on November 10.
- November 10, 9:00 AM PST (1700 UTC): Destiny 2 Update 3.0.0.1 will be available across all platforms and regions. Players will be able to log back into Destiny 2.
- November 10 12:00 PM PDT (2000 UTC): Destiny 2 maintenance is expected to conclude.
For more information, please visit our Destiny Server and Update Status help article.
BEYOND LIGHT PRE-LOAD
Pre-load for Update 3.0.0.1 will be available prior to the game’s release. Below are pre-load timelines and instructions based on platform:
PlayStation
Beginning on November 8 after 8 PM PST (0400 UTC), users can start pre-downloading Update 3.0.0.1 by:
- Navigating to Destiny 2
- Pressing the “Options” button
- And selecting “Check for Updates”
In an effort to decrease server load, some PlayStation Plus users may be able to pre-download Update 3.0.0.1 starting on November 7 after 8 PM PST (0400 UTC) if they have auto update/download enabled on their PlayStation 4. For instructions on how to setup auto update/download, please click here.
PLEASE NOTE: BUNGIE RECOMMENDS THAT PLAYERS SHOULD NOT DELETE THEIR CURRENT VERSION OF DESTINY 2 ON THEIR PLAYSTATION CONSOLE TO SPEED UP THE PRE-DOWNLOAD PROCESS.
Xbox
Pre-load for Xbox will be available shortly after Destiny 2 is taken offline for expected maintenance at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC) on November 9. For instructions on how to setup auto update, please click here.
PC
Pre-load for PC will be available shortly after Destiny 2 is taken offline for expected maintenance at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC) on November 9. Update 3.0.0.1 should automatically be put in the Steam download queue once it is available to pre-load. For more information on managing Steam downloads and updates, please click here.
STORAGE REQUIREMENTS
Below are the updated storage requirements for Beyond Light:
Platform |Destiny 2 Install Size |Storage Space Needed for Installation | |--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--| Xbox Series X|S|65.7 GB|65.7GB| PlayStation 5|70.78 GB|70.78 GB| PlayStation 4|70.78 GB|171.68 GB| Xbox One|65.7 GB|65.7 GB| PC|69.7 GB |186.2 GB** |
** PlayStation 4: Includes current installed version of Destiny 2 (100.9 GB) + Update 3.0.0.1 pre-load (70.78 GB) = 171.68 GB*
*** PC: Destiny 2 Install Size may vary based on languages installed, size shown is maximum size possible *
** PC: Includes current installed version of Destiny 2 (up to 116.5 GB) + Update 3.0.0.1 pre-load (up to 69.7 GB) = 186.2 GB*
DESTINY CONTENT VAULT AND THE END OF SEASON OF ARRIVALS
With the start of Year 4 and the introduction of the Destiny Content Vault on November 10, certain items will be deprecated from player inventories that correspond with Vaulted destinations, activities, and campaigns.
Players should review our help articles on items being deprecated at the start of Year 4 and items being removed at the end of Season of Arrivals for more information on items, quests, and currencies that will be removed from player inventories at the start of Year 4. Some items listed can be used or turned in for rewards, such as Glimmer, weapons, and armor, so be sure to do that before November 10.
Additionally, certain Titles will become Legacy Seals and unavailable to earn at the start of Year 4. Players should be sure to equip the following Titles before November 9 at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC), after which they will be unavailable to earn. For more information, please visit our Year 4 Triumphs Update help article.
Seal |Title | |--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--| A Shadow Rises|Shadow| Reckoner|Reckoner| Black Armory|Blacksmith| Destinations|Wayfarer| Lore|Chronicler| Undying|Undying| Dawn|Savior| Almighty|Almighty| Arrivals|Forerunner| Moments of Triumph 2020|MMXX|
BUNGIE REWARDS
With the release of Beyond Light on November 10, certain Bungie Rewards will no longer be available to earn. These include the ‘Eclipse Sunset’ and ‘Sunset’ emblems, the Year of Shadowkeep Artifact Coins, the Moments of Triumph t-shirt, the Raid Ring, the Prophecy Dungeon Hoodie, the MMXX Seal, and the Forerunner Seal.
Players should be sure to earn these rewards by November 9 at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC) and claim these rewards from the Bungie Rewards page before November 13 at 8 AM PST (1600 UTC).
Encore
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Before we kick off a new year of Destiny content, we have a final round for Movie of the Week. 2020 isn’t over yet, but we’ve had a blast watching community-created content throughout Shadowkeep and its associated Seasons. Many thanks to those who’ve submitted their footage (and art!), as it’s kept us sane week over week.
Here are your final Movie of the Week selections before Beyond Light brings some Darkness to the table.
Movie of the Week: Thanks, Taken!
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Movie of the Week: Festival of the Lost, Parting Shot
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Movie of the Week: Give ‘em a hand
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Movie of the Week: SEVENTH COLUMN!!! ...AND ANOTHER ONE!
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Movie of the Week: It isn’t over until it’s over
OMG can someone explain this please?!?! Like wtf just happened🤷♂️🤷♂️ @A_dmg04 @Gladd @BungieHelp @Xbox pic.twitter.com/aYNfaeG7WM
— TG DuAc (@TGDuAc1) November 2, 2020
Next week, we’ll have a new companion section for Movie of the Week. We felt it important to give the same spotlight to the artists of our community as we’ve been giving to those who create fun videos.
To throw your hat in the ring, submit your content to the Community Creations portal on Bungie.net. If you also post your content to social media, tag it with #DestinyMOTW or #DestinyArt. We’ll snag a few winners each week and grant them some fancy new emblems.
We’ve been here a few times. What was once months became weeks. Weeks have become mere days. Five more sleeps stand between you and Beyond Light. Well, that’s if you can even sleep the night before launch. I know I probably won’t. Many of you have been on this journey with us from the start. In the last year, numerous Guardians have begun their journey through New Light. No matter how long you’ve been a Guardian, we can’t thank you enough for playing.
Stay hydrated. Be healthy. Treat yourself well.
We’re almost there.
See you starside.
-dmg04
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My Big Recommendations List for the Steam Winter Sale
This has been an absolutely miserable year but finally it’s coming to an end, and even looking up now that Facebook and Google are being sued by Federal and State governments. If you played Cyberpunk I’m sure you’ll also have your fingers crossed that both companies get the sledgehammer into little pieces, with Amazon and the App Store soon to follow. Next year is up in the air right now; it could be the year XR is completely strangled by those soulless corpo’s at Facebook, or it could be the year that OpenXR, anti trust action, and consumer apathy towards VR cut their legs out from under them. Things look completely up in the air at this point. So take the holidays and enjoy VR while you still can, next year we might just be playing Valve’s Citadel while the ship goes down.
Well Steam’s Winter Sale is here and it’s a great time to pick up a lot of great games, hidden gems, and so on. This is my list of games to pick up. Some of them are the best prices these games have ever had. I categorized them by price tier, and I put a few standouts in bold either because they’re a great game or a great deal, or both.
Merry Christmas
[I also made a hardware
guide for headsets and PC components, a
guide to using steamVR, a guide about
how to use the Index for AR, and a master acab list of great VR games, demos, and software]
The Sale ends on January 5th at 10AM PT
- PAYDAY 2 (-90%, $0.99) Has a full VR mode that makes the whole game VR and lets you play with flatscreen players. It’s a lot more impressive than you would expect, especially at this price (free with the base game). It has two handed guns, full access to all the content and crossplay with non VR players, a UI on your tablet watch, etc
- Half-Life 2 (-80%, $1.99) You need to use Garry's Mod to run this in VR but the whole game works.
- Naked Sun (-90%, $0.59) Two hand wave shooter style game where you’re being moved through a robot city and fighting ogg enemies with guns and a shield.
- Scanner Sombre (-75%, $1.49) Spelunking through echolocation and a great art style. At this price and with this concept I’d say it’s definitely something to experience in VR.
- Steady (-50%, $2.49) Like the lockpicking puzzle from Alyx or those boardwalk games were you move a ring over wire without touching them together. 50 levels.
- fpsVR (-20%, $3.19) This is a must have utility for SteamVR. My guide to using SteamVR explains why and how to use it.
- Windlands (-90%, $1.99) the first windlands game, it’s a grappling hook style adventure exploration game.
- Evolution VR (-51%, $0.49) This is like that first phase of Spore, where you’re an amoeba eating larger ones and evolving with new limbs. I consider it a steal at this price, although it’s going to become free soon according to the devs.
- PROZE: Enlightenment (-85%, $2.99) Puzzle adventure game set in the tundra
- Evil Robot Traffic Jam HD (-80%, $0.99) Tower defense
- Interkosmos (-33%, $3.34) A space survival game where you’re sitting in a tiny broken space capsule and have to make it back to earth.
- Neonwall (-90%, $0.99) Guide a ball through neon obstacle puzzles
- Spuds Unearthed (-75%, $2.99) RTS TD type thing. I found its balance super frustrating when I tried it but it has a lot of polish and this price is great.
- Squishies (-75%, $2.49) Puzzle game with nice art that looks polished
- Zooma VR (-66%, $2.03) Look at the steam page, it’s basically an adaptation of that arcade game where you shoot colored balls at other colored balls to match them up and pop them.
- Obstruction : VR (-68%, $3.19)
- Fingers: Mini Games (-35%, $1.94) Screw around with finger physics mini games with your index controllers.
- Chroma Lab (-40%, $2.99) Particle simulator that’s kind of trippy
- Drone Hero (-90%, $0.99) Drone obstacle course game
- Defendion (-80%, $$2.19) Laned fantasy strategy game
- Bonfire (-50% $2.49) A little story where you’re crash landed on an alien planet with Ali Wong and meet cartoon aliens
- Cliffstone Manor (-75%, $1.99) Difficult escape room style game
- Moonshot Galaxy (-65%, $1.74) space mini golf game
- Protogon VR (-80% $1.99) Combination minigolf pinball game with neon crazy graphics
- Power Tools VR (-50%, $0.99) Chip away at a stone block with power tools
- Race The Sun (-80%, $1.99) Endless forward obstacle racer with options VR support
- SpellPunk VR (-73%, $2.96) Competitive spell casting game
- Strings (-90%, $0.99) It’s a smaller, more basic game, basically a shooter with different items you use to fight enemies as you teleport around stages.
- SweeperVR (-50%, $1.99) Minesweeper in 3 Dimensions
- PolyCube (-50%, $2.49) complex 3D tetris
- UNTITLED (-50%, $2.49) 3D surreal puzzle game
- Intruders: Hide and Seek (-90%, $1.99) Gamepad horror game
- WRG games bundle (-96%, $0.65) Escape room and a non VR game
- Apex Construct (-75%, $4.99) This is where the energy battery puzzles come from. It's early VR but really strong on story, progression, and interactions, the combat is mostly archery
- FORM (-70%, $4.44) “A surreal adventure where puzzles are built from dreams and memories”
- NIGHTSTAR: Alliance (-60%, $3.99) Bullet Hell in space, but with a story and customization
- Blasters of the Universe (-75%, $3.74) Bullet Hell with a lot of polish and progression and you unlike new weapon parts
- FREEDIVER: Triton Down (-50%, $4.49) Drowning simulator, shorter but high quality
- Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes (-70%, $4.49) This is one of the best VR party games, easy to play remotely or in the same room with other plays holding a printed out or mobile browser manual helping the VR player disarm a bomb.
- Out of Ammo Fun Bundle (-78%, $4.48) A bit rough but still getting updates and still low poly fun. First one has multiplayer. They’re both FPS/RTS but the first one is war themed, while the second one is a zombie game.
- Orb Labs (-50% $4.49) A stealth puzzle game where you use different orbs to complete puzzles around lasers, turrets, and other hazards.
- Thumper (-80%, $3.99) Best selling surreal rhythm game, best with a gamepad. I definitely recommend it if you are fine with the gamepad controls.
- Vetrix (-20% $4.79) Tetris inspired. It has a two layer deep grid allowing for lots of 3D shapes that you can stick into place by hand in a twist on the usual formula. It has its own 8bit tunes, special blocks, multiple modes, and a bunch of color profiles based on the gameboy’s aesthetic.
- Transpose (-75%, $4.99) A game where you solve puzzles with a recording of yourself. It’s one of the best and more creative puzzle games in VR.
- Operation Warcade VR (-75%, $4.99) Old but the concepts work really well. It’s like a 3D light gun game that pulls you in for some moments
- Echo Grotto (-50%, $3.99) Echo Grotto is a spelunking game with stylized graphics. You pick your gear and then use a throwing based teleportation system that leaves a trail behind you.
- HATCHICK (-75%, $3.74) Like Xortex from the lab, a bullet hell inside a dome
- Journey For Elysium (-50%, $4.99) Greek mythology adventure game, a black and white art style
- Just In Time Incorporated (-75% $3.74) You appear in slow motion to save people who have Just In Time Insurance. Super basic graphics but the gameplay is fun and for this price it’s a good buy.
- Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin (-75%, $4.99)
- Shooty Skies Overdrive (-50%, $4.99) It’s a bullet Hell with polish and a voxel style.
- Portable Farm (-20%, $3.99) It’s a light farming game, but the hook is that this runs on top of other games like an overlay.
- Balloonatics (-65%, $3.49) Single and multiplayer hot air balloon combat. A big update is coming.
- Axegend VR (-50%, $4.99) Tower Defense mixed with some fantasy combat
- Buzludzha VR (-60%, $4.79) If you like VR tourism then this is pretty good.
- Carnival Games VR (-75%, $4.99) Party game style game. It crashes unless you turn off the game’s haptics in input bindings
- Bandit Point (-50%, $4.99) Renaissance robot shooter where you possess different robots in combat
- Downward Spiral: Horus Station (-70%, $5.99) Zero G space thriller
- Flotilla 2 (-50%, $4.99) Turn based RTS in 3D between space battleships
- VR Furballs - Demolition (-60%, $4.79) Angry birds style game
- Townsmen VR (-50%, $4.99) This was barebone and felt like a demo, but it’s going to get a big update that scales it up into a game and should be free for anyone who owns this version.
- Starblazer (-75%, $4.99) A 3D space RTS with multiplayer
- Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl (-50%, $4.99) This is a classic VR RTS scaled down to a quick 1v1 RTS battle.
- RuneSage (-60%, $3.99) Open world puzzle fantasy game
- 2945VR (-45%, $3.29) Space shoot em up
- Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son (-33%, $10.04) Sequel to the movie with a similar idea where you relive the same day over and over and progress
- HORIZON VANGUARD (-33%, $10.04) Sega Saturn Style arcade shooter on a hoverbike. Don’t let the graphics fool you, this is a really well made puzzle game in a Sega Saturn style
- Fujii (-35%, $9.74) Gardening with a weird forest spirit
- Garden of the Sea (-50%, $5.99) Animal Crossing looking zen farming game by the devs behind Budget Cuts 2, early access but steady updates are coming adding features and more mechanics..
- GORN (-50%, $9.99) Cartoon melee colosseum game, VR classic that has killed a thousand controllers
- Contractors (-50% $9.99) smallest player base of the big shooters but full of good ideas and strong gunplay. Now has mod support, including custom maps, weapons, and modes like world war II, ninja warrior, Halo, etc
- 1976 - Back to midway (-50%, $7.49) Just came out, it’s a good game, already on sale. This is a good deal. This is a 2.5D shoot em up that has “immersion zones” where you take direct control in first person. It really captures the idea of stepping inside an old arcade machine really well.
- Creed (-75%, $7.49) This is a pretty good multiplayer boxing game that goes for a more arcade style, Graphics are good, it’s polished, and obviously it’s licensed from the movie
- Bizarre Barber (-50%, $5.99) Arcade game about cutting aliens’ hair as they come by in passing subway cars. It goes for a more surrealist vibe.
- Garry's Mod (-33%, $6.69) This needs a community hack to be VR, but it works and even lets you play HL2 in VR
- Cubism (-20%, $7.99) A tetronomo style puzzle where you need to figure out how to make the finished shape out of the pieces you’re given, in 3D. Feels like it’s made by Apple.
- Gravity Lab (-40%, $8.99) Rube goldberg puzzler where you build machines to get the ball from the start to the finish, sci fi settings.
- Pierhead Arcade Bundle (-63%, $7.48) The first one is stronger and a great little VR boardwalk with multiplayer to show off to people with high quality minigames,and with an update this week they made it so if you own both, then the games carry over into 2, which has index support and a ton of its own games too.
- Prison Boss (-60%, $7.99) The best crafting game in VR, you play a prisoner who makes and sells contraband, so it’s business sim as well since you buy equipment and supplies to make various products.
- Tabletop Simulator (-50%, $9.99) (4-Pack for $29.99) (Most DLC -50%,) Look, the VR support here has issues but since it’s a board game simulation all you need to do is make sure you can sit down, move around, and grab things (just make your own bindings from the desktop SteamVR settings). Since it uses the Steam workshop it’s an insane value with endless excellent quality content. The matchmaking system means you can play all kinds of games at all hours with thousands of people.
- Westworld Awakening (-80%, $5.99) If you love the show this is a must have, pretty well received as just a good game overall.
- Superfly (-34%, $9.89) This is a super hero sim game in VR. You can have six different types of powers with their own movement and combat mechanics around a cartoon city
- Ultrawings (-50%, $7.49) Super user friendly flight sim with VR controls. I definitely recommend it. You complete missions to get money to spend on new planes across several cartoonish islands that you fly between.
- Shooty Fruity (-55%, $8.99) One of the best wave shooters in my opinion, but the controls are a little broken for the Index since it doesn’t use SteamVR input.
- RUSH (-60%, $7.99) Wing suit skydiving game
- Climbey (-31% $6.89) A classic VR climbing game with multiplayer and steam workshop support for courses
- Space Pirate Trainer (-40%, $8.99) Everyone’s favorite wave shooter, one of the first wave of room scale VR games that came out with the Vive. There’s no progression but it handles the mechanics of dodging bullets and dealing with growing waves of enemies really well with a lot of modes for your weapons.
- Spectro (-50%, $7.49) Ghost hunting game that feels a bit like it’s made for kids but it’s still a good roguelike.
- The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets (-50% $7.49) Cutesy puzzler abou finding a bunch of stolen pets on little floating islands you interact with.
- ViSP - Virtual Space Port (-50%, $7.49) You build these blocky space stations in third person trying to hold off attacks by aliens.
- A Fishermans Tale (-35%, $9.74) A recursive puzzle game where you’re a fisherman in a box messing with a fisherman in a box who has a fisherman in a box…
- I Expect You To Die (-60% $9.99) A james bond style escape room game with a ton of polish and a lot of content, one of the best of the genre.
- Ultimate Fishing Simulator VR (-66%, $10.09) It’s realistic fishing, in VR.
- The Forest (-50%, $9.99) Port, has good co op, suniverseurvival with crafting and base building in a forest full of mutants.
- The Mage's Tale (-70%, $8.99) I haven’t been able to try this one, but it’s well reviewed and has a nice art style.
- 2MD: VR Football (-30% $9.09) This is basically quarterbacking in VR. You throw the ball but you don’t run around with it. Also you throw with the trigger by default, for safety reasons. It’s still fun, but it’s definitely not a full football experience.
- Deism (-30%, $5.59) This a god game with a low poly art style, it’s in early access with a lot of updates.
- Cave Digger (-50%, $9.99) Steampunk mining game with multiple endings
- The Thrill of the Fight (-20% $7.99) This is the more realistic boxing game more like a simulation, and it's good as a workout.
- Carly and the Reaperman (-50%, $9.99) Escape from the Underworld (-50%, $9.99) One of the best asymmetric games, this is a co op platformer adventure where the VR player helps the gamepad player. Works with Parsec/Remote Play Together
- Grapple Tournament (-34%, $9.89) Grappling hook PvP arena
- Gun Club VR (-60% $7.99) For a gun sim, get H3. The value in this game are the missions where you have to hit cardboard targets across different themes and weapon types like WWII, modern day, zombies, or carnival style targets.
- Swords of Gurrah (-30%, $6.99) Multiplayer sword fighting with a little community.
- Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (-75%, $7.49) Port of third person game, really high quality but gamepad controls.
- IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad (-85%, $7.49) A HOTAS based WWII combat flight sim
- Marble Land (-60%, $5.99) A physics base puzzle game about getting the marble to the goal
- Combat Tested (-69%, $6.19) This is a mixed game, but it’s really creative with the gritty super powers you have while you try to escape from a lab full of people trying to stop you.
- Blind (-75%, $6.24) You can only see by making noise (canes, throwing things, etc)
- Adapt or Perish (-40%, $5.99) Evolutionary strategy game with a VR mode
- Pinball FX2 VR (-60%, $5.99) Made for VR realistic pinball
- Assetto Corsa (-90%, $7.93) Racing sim with optional VR
- Seeking Dawn (-80%, $5.99) Not great, but super ambitious with story and alien enemies and crafting and base building and just generally more than I expected, and it actually kind of works.
- Pavlov VR (-40%, $14.99) Pavlov is basically a game that set out to be Counter Strike VR and became the Garry's Mod of VR and the most creative community outside VRChat. I’ve seen and played everything from roller skate racing, a remake of the entirety of Super Mario 64, TF2 Payload, over a hundred TTT maps, some of the best Battle Royale I’ve seen in VR, Slow-mo zero G modes, SCP, LifeMod and DarkRP, five completely different kinds of zombie modes, and a lot more. It’s been a fixture of SteamVR and pretty soon they’re releasing a World War II update with character models and new guns for the USSR, USA, Germany, and UK, new maps, and multi user tanks that you use in first person. It’s as much a must have as there can be, as long as you like multiplayer shooters.
- Vertigo Remastered (-40%, $14.99) A 19 year old genius kid who worked at Valve and Cloudhead games made this on his own. It feels like a scaled down Alyx with nice physics, creative weapons and tools, and great personality across a campaign.
- Paper Beast (-30%, $13.99) One of the standout PSVR games. You’re in a surreal papercraft desert with dynamic and lifelike paper animals. It has a story and then a smaller sandbox mode. It’s a surreal style experience that works well in VR.
- Jet Island (-35%, $12.99) take on a huge open world with an island of enemies on your hoverboard
- Falcon Age (-35%, $12.99) You play a young falconer who uses her whip and bird to fight off colonizing robots that are strip mining her planet. It’s a pretty high quality game and semi open world.
- Budget Cuts 2: Mission Insolvency (-50%, $14.99) VR stealth with a portal style teleport gun and a bow. It’s well written and has a lot of polish. Sequel to one of the standout classics of early VR.
- Superhot VR (-40% $14.99) This is the game that sold me on VR. It’s basically the Matrix, where time moves when you move. It’s actually not a port of the original superhot, which is why the sequel isn’t coming to VR. I think it’s slightly overrated, there isn’t a ton of content, it just seems more concise than the marketing conveys
- Gadgeteer (-20% $11.99) Even more rube goldberg puzzler, but more of a dominos style of gameplay.
- Ironwolf VR (-30%, $13.99) Submarine simulator, has destroyer mode now too with coop and some competitive multiplayer. I definitely recommend this as a co op experience.
- Hotel RnR (-40% $11.99) You’re a dead rocker who makes a deal with the devil to destroy hotel rooms
- Duck Season (-35%, $12.99) Make someone else play this without explaining it to them. Tell them it’s just Duck Hunt.
- Down the Rabbit Hole (-40%, $11.99) Third person Alyx in Wonderland game with player choice
- 3dSen VR (-40%, $11.99) 3D NES emulator that makes them feel like a totally new experience.
- The Wizards Bundle (-68%, $15.92) The first one is an okay wave shooter, the second is more of an adventure game with great graphics and more variety.
- Thief Simulator VR (-27%, $14.59) A semi open world game where you go around stealing people’s phones, jewelry, and cars.
- Vox Machinae (-45%, $13.74) If you like Mech games this is basically a must buy, you control it by hand with all the bits and bobs of the cockpit and the graphics look really good. VR and flatscreen with crossplay multiplayer.
- Yupitergrad (-15% $12.74) A grappling hook adventure game set aboard a collapsing soviet space station
- Windlands 2 (-60%, $11.99) This is a grappling hook style game with somewhat basic graphics but large worlds and big enemies. Some people have called it the best spiderman game in VR.
- Hello Puppets (-30%, $13.99) Cartoon horror with weird humor, your hand is an evil puppet
- Moss (-50% $14.99) A third person platformer adventure game about a little mouse
- Skytropolis (-55%, $11.24) A vertical citybuilder, which is a rare genre in VR. It’s from 2017 and doesn’t get updates any more but it does work and it’s not a bad game in the genre.
- Pixel Ripped 1995 (-30%, $13.99) A love letter to 16 bit gaming. You play video games inside the game and have to avoid getting caught playing in the middle of the night, etc.
- ModBox (-25% $11.24) This is a sandbox game creator with steam workshop support. IT has a lot of potential and supports asymmetric play, VR multiplayer, and creation inside and outside of VR.
- New Retro Arcade: Neon (-35%, $12.99) This is kind of buggy, and you need to use the unofficial arcade builder, but as a social VR experience for friends it can be pretty cool. Roms aren’t shared online unless the other people are on parsec or something, but a few activities like movies, the built in games, and bowling are actually multiplayer. The arcade is persistent for you and your friends even if you’re doing different things in different rooms.
- Phasmophobia (-10%, $12.59) The big new co op horror multiplayer game, but this one also supports VR
- Synth Rider (-40% $14.99) This is the closest Beat Saber style game to the original, with a smoother style of gameplay. But the maps feel unbalanced, like every difficulty or gameplay setting is the exact same map just being automatically tweaked. This can make it feel unfair or constricting.
- Into the Radius (-30%, $20.99) Basically Stalker VR, kill enemies and complete missions for cash as you progress
- Mini Motor Racing X (-50%, $19.99) Racing game that you control with your actual hands which is great but the tracks can be pretty small and with lots of tight turns since it’s a micro car game. Also has a rocket league mode which is fun.
- Stride (-25%, $14.99) Basically mirror’s edge in VR. You run and jump and wall run across different environments, with some combat and stealth too. There are two modes out now and another one coming soon with a story.
- BattleGroupVR (-30% $17.49) This is probably the most polished RTS in VR, made by one dev but it’s right up there with final assault and works better in singleplayer. Multiplayer is being tested right now. It’s a space real time RTS where you’re on the bridge of one of your ships and you can command the others in holograms, see the battle in third person, and the graphics are great. There’s a story and campaign too
- Until You Fall (-20%, $19.99) This is basically Infinity Blade in VR. It does melee by having lines appear in the air and you need to line up your sword with them to block enemy attacks, with some later enemies requiring you to duck off to the side to dodge attacks. It’s a roguelike so you fight through as many enemies you can, small stage by stage, until you die and spend the money you earned on new weapons and abilities.
- STAR WARS™: Squadrons (-40%, $23.99) As an experience, Squadrons is exactly what you expect. It’s really immersive and really feels like being in a star wars dogfight
- The Talos Principle VR (-60%, $15.99) Croteam are the devs of the classic Serious Sam series, and when the Vive came out they went all in and converted all their games over to VR, including their puzzle game Talos Principle. It was one of the higher quality experiences back then and it still holds up.
- Tales Of Glory (-40%, $17.99) First person medieval war RTS. It’s been in early access for a long time but the dev has put in a ton of work and made it a pretty unique experience with some of the best medieval combat outside Blade and Sorcery combined with strategy and base capture.
- Universe Sandbox (-33%, $19.99) Just got an update redoing the entire VR UI side of the game.
- Automata Break (-15%, $16.99) An asymmetric tower defense game you can play with a friend or alone.
- Skyrim VR (-67%, $19.79) Good port, works better than Fallout4VR with a big modding scene. This price is a bit higher than it has been in the past.
- Ragnarock (-15%, $16.99) Rhythm game where you beat the drums on a viking ship to metal and celtic rock. This seems like the best beat saber style game I’ve seen alongside Synth Riders, and the music is distinct.
- Industrial Petting (-15% $16.99) You farm alien pets to sell them back on earth. It’s an industrial production kind of game, with multiplayer support and VFlatscreen modes
- In Death (-50%, $14.99) Roguelike archery game set in Purgatory. Price feels a little steep when it stopped getting updates on PC in early 2019.
- Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs (-30%, $10.49) Basically Angry Birds in 3D. You can shoot in room scale and teleport to different spots to get a better angle. There's a fair amount of content too.
- Arizona Sunshine (-63%, $14.79) The first big co op zombie game. It shows it's age but it's still popular and has some DLC. I would recommend this one only on sale and mostly if you're planning on playing co op.
- L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files (-50%, $14.99) I think the cases are taken from the original game, but it's LA Noire in VR. There's driving, shooting, interrogations, looking for clues, everything from the original game. Seven cases.
- Half-Life: Alyx (-25%, $44.99) The best looking VR game and one of the best games of this generation.
- Boneworks (20%, $23.99) This game is a must buy, but do not get it if you’re new. This is a game where pushing on a wall with your hand pushes the camera back. It will make you sick if you don’t have VR legs. The combat, melee, physics puzzles, are all extremely strong and it has an 11 hour campaign, along with arena, zombies, and sandbox modes. Another content update is also coming soon.
- The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners (-20%, $31.99) This is a great game. It’s less Left for Dead and more realistic in the sense that tension is very high and both humans and zombies are threats. There’s light crafting, upgrades, and collecting supplies, complete with physics and a faction systems and multiple paths to go down.
- Vacation Simulator (-20% $23.99) The best minigame collection game with the games integrated into three worlds with a lot to do, across multiple settings with progression and a basic story. Super immersive.
- No Man's Sky (-50%, $29.99) All new updates apply to VR too. Performance is spotty but the entire massive experience is carried over into VR, and there’s multiplayer too.
- Hot Dogs, Horseshoes, and Hand Grenades ($19.99) This game isn’t on sale but it’s getting an advent calender with daily updates until christmas. This is basically the ultimate “labor of love” game in VR. Detailed physics simulation of lots of guns, big recommendation for those with any interest in sandbox, has game modes like Take and Hold and Team Fortress, single player only.
- Pistol Whip (-20%, $19.99) This doesn’t go on sale as often. I would say it’s the first rhythm game that can actually go toe to toe with Beat Saber. It doesn’t have custom maps, but it gets regular content updates and just got a set of five campaign levels.
- Ultimate VR Stealth Bundle (-68%, $35.72) Budget Cuts 1, Budget Cuts 2, Unknightly, and Espire
- VTOL VR (-15% $25.49) This is the most advanced made for VR flight sim with full VR controls, tons of customization, and a bunch of modern fighter planes. It’s a community favorite and it’s even getting multiplayer soon.
- AGOS - A Game Of Space (-33%, $20.09) This got a super mixed reaction. It’s basically a third person satellite simulator. If you like the movement method you’ll like the game, otherwise you probably won’t. Watch some gameplay on youtube.
- Sairento (-35%, $19.79) This is like a ninja version of Superhot. I didn't enjoy it too much but many people like it. It has a lot of different weapons and you can do things like bounce off walls up to an enemy and cutting their head off with a katana.
- Gnomes & Goblins (-35%, $19.49) This got a mixed reaction. Basically it’s a game where you visit a community of gnomes and has two parts. In the first part you go on a little adventure meeting the gnomes and hanging out with them. But the rest of the game is doing activities and collecting artifacts around their town to fill your house.
- Disassembly VR (-30%, $20.99) Destruction and deconstruction physics sandbox simulator, just added melee combat.
Also worth taking a look at, over at Fanatical they’re doing a “make your own bundle.” 2 games for $6.99, 3 games for $9.99, 5 games for $14.99
- Cosmic Trip - A very polished VR base capture RTS in first person where you build and manage drones and mine for crystals on an alien planet.
- Sprint Vector - Basically a footrace game you play by swinging your arms, set on an alien gameshow.
- Polybius - A trippy tunnel shooter with surreal pixel graphics, based on the haunted arcade game.
- Rainbow Reactor- Kind of like a sac toss arcade puzzle game.
- Conductor - An escape room style adventure game with a physics gun.
- Battlewake - This was a really hyped game that kind of flopped. Basically it looks really great graphically but the gameplay loop feels really repetitive and kind of shallow. For co op at this price it's a good buy.
- Raw Data - Early polished VR wave shooter, but it shows its age. It has multiplayer but the index support is pretty bad.
- Dungeons & Treasure VR - A small voxel fantasy roguelike with multiplayer support.
submitted by OXIOXIOXI to Vive [link] [comments]
AITA: My parents don't like me playing video games
My parents really just don't like me playing video games. I don't say that as I play non-stop for like 8 hours straight, they just are prejudiced against it for some reason. Whenever I asked, they used to say that it was bad for me, and I would ask how and they just let me talk about it.
I tried giving them a researched paper on how it's good for you, but they said they didn't want to look at it and threw it away (it was physical paper.) Now when I ask them their explanation is "You need to be able to find your own ways to entertain yourself and media just spoon-feeds you entertainment." I tried to argue, but they just won't listen and will punish me for "arguing" even if I'm just trying to have a formal debate.
They are good parents, for example they bought me my desktop PC and have taken me to Disney, but they are just really touchy when it comes to media.
Anyway, here is the story.
I got fed up with them filtering and limiting my media so I couldn't play with my friends, and they would shut off my internet in the middle of my online matches because "it's not important." I decided to install some software that would change my MAC address, basically like the I.D. for my computer, and would assign my laptop to the home profile on the Circle so the limits were taken away. I was able to get away with this for at least a month before I ran out of excuses and confessed. They were furious. They took away every device I had, my phone, my laptop, and my PS4 for a week. Then they only gave me my phone back, because they couldn't trust me with the laptop. I was bawling and cried for like a half an hour. My dad said he was going to cancel the order for my desktop that was my graduation present, but Mom kindly talked that over with him and they said when it came they were not going to give it to me. The next day they sat down with me and made me tell them every account I had created on the internet, such as Reddit, Youtube, etc. They got even more mad for not asking them to create some of the accounts, even though I am a teenager at this point.
This is not the first time they have overpunished me. They would not let me play survival Minecraft on my Kindle Fire, and I got that taken away for THREE MONTHS. They wouldn't even tell me why survival mode was bad. I finally got mom to tell me and she said "because it's gory, I don't want you playing a game with blood in it." Cue me having to explain to mom what a Minecraft mod is and how the YouTube videos she saw of the gore were not actual Minecraft.
So Reddit, am I the asshole?
Edit: Just for clarification, I have already served this punishment.
submitted by Spiritual-Candle2802 to AmItheAsshole [link] [comments]
I am 36 years old, make $100,000 in Chicago, and work in Information Technology
Section One: Assets and Debt
Retirement Balances: Traditional IRA $72k, Pre-Tax 403b $34k, total of $106k
Equity: Approximately $25k based on comp sales in my area, but I haven’t had my condo appraised since I purchased it a few years ago. Planning on looking into this to try to remove PMI later this year.
Savings account balance: $3800
Investment account balance: $6300
Checking account balance: $600 (most extra funds go into debt repayment or savings)
Vehicle Value: $15k
Credit card debt (and how you accumulated it): I’m no longer carrying any credit card debt, I pay any balances off each month
Student loan debt: $99k for undergrad + masters, I work for a non-profit employer and I am planning on Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). I’m 11 months away from forgiveness based on my work history.
Mortgage Balance: $102k
Car note: $14300 for a 2017 Honda HR-V (purchased used in 2020)
Debt Consolidation Loan: $16500 at 8.49%. I’ve been carrying this debt for way too long…finally decided to stop messing around with credit cards except for a rewards card. This is a 36 month note but I will pay it off much faster (see expenses section).
Consumer Debt: I have a $2100 Care Credit balance for surgery for my dog, which has 0% financing that ends in July 2021.
Net Worth: around $25k
Notes/Goals: In about 2-3 years I plan on renting out my condo and upgrading to a home with a garage and some outdoor space. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to get a few hundred dollars of income per month from renting out my unit, which I plan on putting into savings. I’ve never been a landlord, but I will probably hire a management company to deal with vetting renters and collecting rent/doing repairs. I’d also like to move somewhere warm…I hate winter. Not sure if I can do that with my current employer, we’re 100% remote now but that’s not permanent. I’m going to advocate for that option though, otherwise I’ll have to look for a 100% remote job in my field after my student loans get forgiven.
My aim is to have all unsecured debt completely paid off by early 2022. I could probably pay it off faster at the expense of saving any money or reducing my lifestyle, but I think I will have better success with moderation. After that’s all paid off, I plan on saving what I was using for debt to fund a down payment for a new home.
Section Two: Income
Income Progression:
Honestly, my career was a bit chaotic in my late 20s/early 30s. I work in the IT field - I started out in IT support after getting my masters degree, and have progressed into more programming/engineering work. From 2014-2015 I tried out some other career paths that didn’t work out and just went back to IT because it pays well and I’m good at it. I am finally working for an organization that I like and have a role that I mostly enjoy.
2009-2014: $52k-$60k, IT support with a government agency. My role never changed, but I did get increases due to pay schedules.
2016-2018: $50k-62k, various IT positions at a tech startup, starting with desktop support
2018-present: $80k-$100k, IT work at a non-profit, most recent promotion was in November 2020
Monthly take home
$5200, paid once per month. I put 10% of my income pre-tax into my 403b since my employer matches that 10%. Unfortunately the match was put on hold due to COVID, but will start again with my January paycheck. It’s going to be nice seeing $20k going into my retirement this year.
I contribute $216/month into my HSA, since I have a HDHP. I get a match of up to $1000/year in my HSA from my employer, so I get the max pre-tax contribution of $3600. I pay approximately $110/month in premiums for health, dental, and vision combined.
I pay a long-term disability insurance premium post-tax of $10.25/month to increase my benefit amount to 70% of my salary until I hit retirement age, should I become disabled. I feel like this is really important as a single person, to make sure I have funds to cover my care.
Side Jobs/Other Income I will occasionally sell items on eBay or Poshmark. I run all online shopping/curbside pickup through Rakuten and usually get about $150/year in rebates for that. Credit card cash back is usually about $30/month. I get about $200/year in interest from my credit union. My dad gives me ~$500 for Christmas every year.
Section Three
Monthly Expenses
Mortgage + Taxes/Insurance + HOA: $1075, this includes parking, heat, water, trash, and cooking gas
Retirement contribution: I only do pre-tax contributions which are accounted for above
Healthcare: I pay all expenses with my pre-tax HSA funds. I’ve never had to pay more than what I have saved in my HSA, which is a blessing.
Savings contribution: I don’t save a set amount, right now I’m prioritizing debt payoff
Utilities: $71 electric, $66 internet
Cellphone: $156, this is for my phone + plan and another family member’s plan (their phone is paid off).
Subscriptions: $11 Spotify, $10 Kindle Unlimited, $15 Netflix, $13 Hulu, $8 for AppleCare and $3 for iCloud storage. AppleCare came in handy when I cracked my phone screen last year.
Credit Card Yearly fees: $95 annually. I have the Chase Sapphire Preferred for the cash back and travel benefits
Debt Consolidation Loan: $521, I pay $1021 (extra $500/mo) to get it paid off faster.
Student Loans: $0 due to the CARES Act. I estimate this will be $400/month when the forbearance period is over.
Car Payment: $240
Car Insurance: $96
Gas/Ubers/City Street Parking/Tolls: $75, I’m WFH so I’m only driving for errands or the occasional socially distanced get-together with friends. Not sure I even spend this much, but I occasionally have to reload my tollway iPass or my Chicago parking meter app, which both reload in $20 increments.
Groceries & Household Needs: $350 for food and household/cleaning supplies, includes tip/fees for grocery delivery
Dog Expenses: $400/mo because of the CareCredit balance for recent surgeries & related care. Normally I pay around $50/month for grooming and food/treats (she’s a small dog).
Personal Care: $260-ish (monthly average) for hair color, haircuts, skincare and makeup. I get haircuts every 12 weeks, hair color every 6 weeks, and Dysport injections every 4 months or so.
Gym/Fitness: $15 for Peloton app - I own a spin bike that I use 5x/week, plus I have some strength equipment at home.
Paid Hobbies: $50 - budget for new Switch games, iPad apps, books that aren’t available on Kindle Unlimited, etc. Not sure I actually spend this each month but it’s built into my budget.
Yearly Expenses
Amazon Prime: $119
Vehicle City Sticker: $82
Vehicle Registration: $151
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
I got an allowance but there was no discussion of savings or smart spending. My dad was very stingy with money, my mom liked to spend it.
Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes, I was always expected to go to college. My parents divorced when I was 16 and they didn’t save any money for my tuition.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
I worked at a local restaurant as a server, so that I had money to spend for gas for my car and for fun with my friends. I stopped getting an allowance when I got this job.
Did you worry about money growing up?
A little bit, because when my parents divorced I sensed that my mom’s financial stability was not very stable, even though my dad was paying child support for my sister and I.
Do you worry about money now?
I’d say I’m somewhat vigilant about my money now. I lived paycheck to paycheck until my early 30s, because I never prioritized having savings and I spent more than I should have. I have more breathing room now, despite the debt that I carry. I’ll feel a lot better when it’s gone.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
I was basically on my own when I went to college at 18. I did work-study and took out student loans to pay for school, room, and board.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
No
Other notes: I wear a mask in public places. Fair warning that this was a tough week for me personally. 2021 is already roughing me up!
Section Four: Diary
Day 1
7:30a - today is a holiday so I don’t have to work - but I forgot to turn off my alarm. I stay in bed until 8am before my dog starts bugging me to feed her. Since she just had dental surgery, I have to grind up her kibble and mix it with water, and give her meds wrapped in some turkey since that’s the only way she’ll take them. After she eats, we go outside for a walk. I decide I want to go get some iced coffee - I check my Dunkin Donuts app and see that I have a free coffee coupon to use. I put the dog in the car and while it warms up, I scrape all the ice off my windshield (gotta love Chicago winters). We drive to Dunkin and go through the drive-thru. I also get some egg wraps and a donut ($3.53).
9:15a - I do my weekly check of my bank accounts against my banking spreadsheet. I’m very paranoid about fraud (I had my identity stolen when I was in college), so I like to make sure everything looks good. I also have a rewards checking account that gives me 3.09% on my checking account balance when I hit a certain amount of spending on my Visa, and 12 debit card transactions per month. I’m about $250 short on the Visa, and 2 transactions short, but there’s a few weeks left. I remember that I was going to switch some of my autopay bills over to that Visa card just so I can hit the rewards tier, so I do that. I spent a bit checking my personal email, reading Reddit, and texting my sister, who is also off work today.
10:00a - I start my projects for the day - cleaning out my fridge/freezer, and taking out all the storage bins from under my bed and cleaning out what I don’t need to keep. I got a Roomba for Christmas and I really want to use it to clean under my bed, but the bins are preventing that. I will take what I keep down to my storage unit in the basement.
11:00a - A guy comes to pickup an old wingback chair that I put up for free on Craigslist. It was a hand-me-down, so I wouldn’t feel right charging for it. I was going to donate it but I live on the third floor and no one is doing furniture pickups right now. He leaves with it and I go back to cleaning & organizing.
12:00p - Decide I want some more bins/organizers for what’s left after purging what I don’t need. I go to Container Store online and after putting what I want into my cart and decide that instead of curbside pickup which will take a few days, I’m going to just go to the store and get what I need. Change into what I’ll end up wearing to workout later, and put a sweater on over it. Wash my face, put on SPF (I’m pale and it’s sunny out), tinted moisturizer, concealer, mascara, and eyebrow tint. Grab my wallet and a mask and head out.
12:15p - While driving, phone call with my ex. We have been attempting to repair our relationship after we broke up in the fall. He’s been acting distant lately, so I called him to find out wtf was going on. An hour and 10 minutes later, it feels like it’s over - again. I told him that I couldn’t wait for him to figure out what he wants, and said good-bye. I cry in the parking lot of The Container Store for about 10 minutes, then get myself together and go into the store. Unfortunately they don’t have the boot boxes I wanted, but I got everything else ($99.48). I notice that Trader Joe’s is next door so I get in line and buy a few items - butter chicken, mac n cheese, 3 bags of dried mango, soyaki sauce, bell peppers, spinach, and flowers for myself because I deserve it ($40.18). I eat an entire bag of dried mango while crying on the drive home. When I get home, I pull out all the stuff I got at the Container Store and do some organizing. Folding all my leggings Konmari-style is satisfying. I feel a little bit better.
4p - All of a sudden it’s 4pm. I feed the dog and take her outside for a quick walk. I don’t have a lot of energy so I sit on the couch to get some dog cuddles and scroll through social media a bit. Decide to be productive to distract myself - spend the next 2 hours doing random stuff: unboxing an Amazon delivery, moving stuff to storage, taking recycling out to the bin.
6p - Answer a bunch of Instagram DMs I’ve been ignoring. Go back and forth with a friend about her new job and commiserate over having imposter syndrome. Write in my journal. Debate buying another organizer on Amazon, this time for nail polish. Resist, and close the window. I decide to eat a protein bar, I’m not hungry but I need to eat something that isn’t carbs. My ex responds to my IG story. I ignore it.
7p - Convince myself to get on my spin bike and do a workout. I choose a 45 minute pop ride that I bookmarked to take at some point. It’s like God knew what I needed, the playlist was so fun. I definitely sing along to Destiny’s Child “Survivor” - and I feel much better. After the ride, I eat a bowl of Cheerios with skim milk, plus a greek yogurt cup. Take a shower, change into comfy clothes, and use a lot of dry shampoo as I just washed my hair yesterday and don’t want to deal with it again. I coax my dog into taking her second dose of meds with turkey.
9p - I look at my phone and my ex sent me two more messages on IG in response to my story. Men, ugh. I get cozy on the couch with the book I’m reading - We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. I finish it and add it to the list of books I’ve read in 2021. This is #5.
10:15p - Take my dog on her final trip outside. We get into bed and I scroll through TikTok until I start feeling sleepy, then lights out.
Daily Total:
Restaurants: $3.53
Groceries: $40.18
Household: $99.48
Day 2
7:45a - I had my alarm set for 8 but I’m up early. Cuddle with my dog for 10 minutes then get up. Make the bed, this is a newer habit of mine but it makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something first thing in the morning. Give the dog her meds and while she’s eating, I put on some leggings and a sweater. I walk her around the block and after I come back inside, I wash my face, moisturize, and put on some makeup. I am trying out some new concealer and eye shadow, plus I finally got an eyelash curler (lol). I’m trying to make more of an effort to feel like a human in the mornings so it’s easier to transition back to the office when I have to go back. I straighten parts of my hair that look weird, and add some more dry shampoo. Make some coffee and add collagen protein powder and some cream. Sit down at my desk with a Greek yogurt cup and start reading through work emails and addressing my calendar.
9a - Video call with IT security team and the VP of my department
10a - Scroll through IG while making another cup of coffee. Find out that the shampoo I recently bought is part of a class action lawsuit for hair loss…great. Good thing it’s not open, and I can return it to Ulta and get something else. Go back to my desk and check ticket status and review some project documentation.
11a - Make some food - spinach, egg + egg whites, bagel with cream cheese - then back to work things. I get a new project that I was recommended for by the head of IT, so that’s cool.
11:30a - Quick video call to discuss a project, but it could have been an email. Go back to regular work things.
1230p - Take a break from work to do a live 30 minute Peloton class. Fun and feels good to move! Quick shower and clothing change, microwave the mac n cheese I bought on Monday, and go back to work.
2p - Call with my team, I leave my video off for this one. Review/work some assigned tickets and more emails. Work is kind of light right now. I should look ahead for the week but instead I get on YouTube and watch some videos. I can tell my anxiety is high because I get really unfocused.
4p - I have an application software upgrade I need to monitor - luckily this is kicked off by the vendor and I just need to make sure nothing breaks on our side. I join a conference call just so I’m connected to their technical team, but there isn’t much for me to do. I give the dog her evening meal and then take her outside. Come back in and spend some time surfing the internet while the software upgrades. Watch the COVID memorial service on the National Mall and can’t believe it’s taken this long to do one.
5p - Open a bag of dried mango, eat while checking upgrade status. Discuss some issues with the vendor technical contact, spend the next 2 hours fixing issues and completing upgrades. I email stakeholders to confirm that the upgrades are completed.
7p - Turn off work computer for the night. I setup my Roomba and put it on the dock to charge. I’ve named her Harriet. I decide I should eat something other than dried mango for dinner and put some chicken nuggets in the air fryer. I take some chicken out of the freezer and put in the fridge to thaw for tomorrow’s dinner. I should at least try to eat healthy…
730p - Harriet says she’s charged enough so I run the first cleaning job. She’s noisy but I am very excited about this. I hate cleaning so much. Before now I didn’t realize how many cords I had on the floor. She finishes running after an hour and there’s so much dirt and dust in the trap. Best gift ever.
830p - Give dog her meds. Scroll through IG, get bored, decide to watch a movie. I pick A Star Is Born because I need a good cry before I go to bed, right?
10:30p - Walk the dog, do my nighttime routine, and get in bed. Try to fall asleep but I’m struggling due to anxiety. Decide to scroll through TikTok for a while as that usually makes me sleepy. My plan works and I fall asleep around 11.
Daily total: $0
Day 3
730a - Alarm goes off but I’m already awake. Didn’t sleep well due to being woken up at 2:30am by a snow blower outside my window? That couldn’t have waited a few hours? I snuggle with my dog for 20 minutes and then get up and make the bed. Give pup her food, walk her quickly since it is colder than normal today. I make some coffee and I also take care of all the dirty dishes in my sink and put them in the dishwasher. Change clothes and fix my hair. I leave my glasses on today but still put one some eyebrow tint and concealer. Glasses can only hide so much.
8:30a - Check the news because it’s Inauguration Day and find out that the federal student loan pause will be extended until September 30th! I immediately open up my financial spreadsheet and make some updates to plan ahead. This is going to save me approximately $3000 in loan payments since these months still count towards my PSLF forgiveness. This also means I should defer filing my federal taxes until the October deadline because my income-based repayment certification date gets pushed back several months, and I don’t need my last 4 payments to be higher than they have to.
8:45a - Check work email, review the ticket queue I need to work on today, start tackling those.
1030a - Grab a Greek yogurt cup, spill some on my living room rug, my dog cleans it up. Whoops. I use a bit of carpet cleaner but there’s no stain, phew.
11a - Get a little bit emotional about the Inauguration. Kind of a relief overall.
12p - Start of 4 back-to-back calls that will end at 4pm. I grab a bagel & cream cheese to eat during the noon call, since it’s a lunch & learn. They also give us a $30 UberEats voucher that expires at midnight tonight, so I guess I’m ordering dinner tonight!
4p - Finish up my last meeting, my boss still wants to chat so I need to stay online a bit longer. I feed the dog and take her outside real quick while my boss is in another call. I order a poke bowl and a Fiji water from Uber Eats with my voucher, all I need to pay for is the tip for the driver ($5). Read the emails that piled up while I was in meetings, also check my personal email as well.
445p - Food gets delivered - it’s a really good bowl. My boss calls me and we end up discussing a variety of things for 2 hours. I’m really excited about my career right now.
7p - I write in my journal for a bit. Text back and forth with my sister, we both are feeling pretty emotionally exhausted. I wish she didn’t live so far away. Spend way too long trying to find something to watch on Netflix. I end up watching stand-up comedy - Daniel Sloss “Jigsaw” which I’ve seen before but it hits different tonight.
930p - I give the pup her meds. Do my nighttime routine and crawl into bed because I’m feeling emotionally exhausted. Scroll through social media in bed for a bit. Do a sleep meditation for 10 minutes, then lights out.
Daily total:
Restaurants: $5
Day 4
7a - Alarm goes off, change into workout clothes and walk the dog. I do two 15 minute Peloton workouts back to back. I feed the dog and give her meds, and jump in the shower. I do hair and makeup today because I have a presentation to do. Make some coffee and a bagel with cream cheese.
9:30a - Starting my morning of meetings/presentations. Already looking forward to noon when I can disconnect from video calls.
12p - Make some veggie pasta and chicken nuggets for lunch. Catch up on emails and review my to-do list - it feels like I have way too much to do, trying not to stress. I decide that I want to get outside this weekend and go hiking in Wisconsin. I text my mom and ask if she can stop by my place on Saturday to walk the dog mid-day and she says yes. I order some fleece-lined leggings, wool socks, and a puffer jacket from Target for the hiking trip - the only cold weather stuff I have is not hiking-friendly ($96.19).
1p - Two back-to-back meetings, but these aren’t video calls, thankfully. Work on some tickets and write out my ever-expanding to-do list.
4p - Feed the dog and take her outside. I get in my car to go do curbside pickup for the clothes I ordered earlier. Drive home and decide I should find all my gear for the trip because I’m not entirely sure where I put my hiking shoes.
6p - Make dinner - chicken teriyaki over ramen noodles. I have leftovers, so I will eat that for lunch tomorrow.
630p - Half-heartedly watch a few episodes of House while also scrolling through social media. I kinda fall asleep on the couch at some point.
10p - Walk the dog very quickly, it’s freezing out. Go to bed and crash, I think my emotional exhaustion is catching up with me.
Daily total:
Clothing: $96.19
Day 5
7:30a - Alarm goes off. I lay in bed for 30 minutes because I’m still tired. Change into work-appropriate clothing. Feed the dog, walk. It is FREEZING. I make some coffee and grab a Greek yogurt. Sit down and start reading through emails and chatting with co-workers via Teams.
10a - Two calls back to back
1130a - Lunch - bagel and cream cheese, two eggs
12p - Charging through my to-do list
3p - Last call of the day, ends up being a full hour…gross. Turn my computer off at 4p. Feed and walk the dog. I eat my leftover stir fry from last night for dinner.
530p - A friend calls and we chat for about an hour. We make tentative plans to go skiing as a day trip sometime next month. I’m stoked because I’ve never been skiing and some of the cold weather clothes I bought for this hike would be useful for that too.
630p - Watch Ever After while making sure I’m ready for my impromptu hiking trip for tomorrow. Find out I need to have a park pass for my car to use the state parks in Wisconsin. Buy an annual pass for 2021 ($38) because that’s the only thing you can buy online and it looks like all the park stations are closed due to COVID so I can’t buy a day pass. I’m going to use this as an excuse to go hiking more often.
9p - I’m leaving early tomorrow, so I feed/walk the dog and do my nighttime routine, head to bed.
Daily Totals:
Hobbies: $38
Day 6
6a - alarm goes off - it’s hiking day! I feed/walk the dog, and then get fully dressed. I grab my hiking shoes, a water bottle, a small backpack, and a Nutri-grain bar, and head out.
730a - I get off the interstate in Wisconsin and go through a Dunkin’ Donuts drive-thru. I get a small coffee and a bagel & egg sandwich ($5.89). Eat while driving the rest of the way to the state park.
845a - find a place to park by the trailhead and make sure my park pass receipt is showing on my dashboard. I discover there’s more snow than I thought there was on the trails, so I decide to just hike in my Ugg snow boots instead of the hiking shoes, since the snow boots go higher on my leg and are pretty comfortable. Grab my pack and start the hike! It’s really pretty with the snow, and the cold isn’t too bad. I’m glad I have my boots on. I do a 7 mile trail loop and it takes me about 3 hours.
12p - Drive home. I stop at a gas station to use the restroom and fill up my gas tank, since gas is much cheaper in Wisconsin than it is in Illinois ($23.44).
230p - Make it home. I take a long shower and then just sorta lay on the couch for a while with my dog - I’m tired from the hike and the driving. I take an accidental nap.
5p - Wake up because I heard my dog whining for food. Feed and walk her, then decide to make dinner. I have no motivation so I just throw a frozen pizza in the oven. It’s a medium size, so I eat the whole thing.
6p - Scroll through social media since I haven’t been on it at all today. Get cozy on the couch with a new book - How Will You Measure Your Life by Clayton Christensen.
9p - Walk the dog and decide I’m tired enough to just go to bed.
Daily Total:
Restaurants: $5.89
Gas: $23.44
Day 7
10a - Holy cow I slept late. Feels good to do that once in a while. Feed and walk the dog, then I make myself some coffee. Today I just add some milk to it. Check personal emails. I think about working out and decide that I’m better off just doing a stretch class from the Peloton app. I pick a 20 minute one and it was the right decision.
11a - Make breakfast - toast with peanut butter, scrambled egg with egg whites. Shower and start the multiple loads of laundry I need to do. Clean the kitchen and the bathroom - not a deep clean but all the surfaces. I straighten up the other rooms in my apartment as well.
1p - FaceTime with my sister. Today is the only day we both don’t work, so it’s ideal to catch up on Sundays.
3p - I’m hungry again but not enough for a meal. I eat an apple with sliced cheddar cheese. Continue with laundry and play fetch with my dog. I’m glad to see she has some energy back after her surgery.
4p - My ex calls me. Asks if we can meet up and talk. He invites me over for dinner, I say ok. We agree on 6pm. I freshen up my hair and do some makeup. Change clothes into leggings and a long sweater. Feed and walk the dog.
530p - Drive to my ex’s apartment. I listen to my upbeat Taylor Swift playlist on the way there. Spend the evening at his place, he orders dinner for us and I don’t offer to pay, LOL.
930p - I drive home. I text my ex that I made it home safely, since he asked me to. Walk the dog, and do my nighttime routine. Check my work calendar for tomorrow, realize that I have a previously scheduled eye doctor appointment in the morning that I forgot about. Good thing I checked! I go to bed since I want to workout in the morning before the appointment.
Daily Total: $0
Weekly Totals
Restaurants: $14.42
Groceries: $40.18
Household: $99.48
Clothing: $96.19
Gas: $23.44
Hobbies: $38
Reflections: This isn’t a normal week due to the impromptu hiking trip, but my spending wasn’t terrible. I’m really happy that I won’t be paying student loans for the next 9 months. This diary showed me that I may spend too much time on social media and that I should be eating more vegetables. I just really love carbs…haha. I will need to make good use of that state park pass, especially in the spring and fall when the weather is mild!
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