Medway Meander (Part 1)

After those unfortunate events in the St. Gotthard Pass and the so-called ‘River of Tears’ incident in Calabria, I thought it wise to mothball Tally-Ho Corner Tours for a spell. Now the press has found new whipping boys, and memories of frostbitten children and handcuffed gondoliers seem to be fading, I feel it’s safe to recommence operations. For the first post-hiatus trip I’ve chosen a TSW6 rail journey in the southeast corner of England. Quietly humming to itself on the other side of the jump is a three-car Class 375 ‘Electrostar’. Hop aboard if you fancy a fact-filled trundle from…

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3×3

Want to turn a green lane into a brown lane, tow a Gulaschkanone across a snowy field, or roam the Western Desert trashing Axis airfields? Get a 4×4. Want quick introductions to games of interest to realism relishers and old fogies? Read a 3×3. Prior to penning one of these articles I’ll play three tempting titles for at least three hours each. While it would be cavalier to call the reports that result from such brief auditions ‘reviews’, it’s conceivable they might lead to more prolonged playtests, and prompt or prevent the odd purchase.

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Win Delta Force bullet-doux Dagger Directive!

Dagger Directive is retro done right. I came to this conclusion weeks ago, but last night’s gripping airfield infiltration mission underscored it. Between me and my goal – a Prighozin-type mercenary leader and a batch of nicked Novichok – were dozens of armed-to-the-teeth goons and a kilometre or two of North Caucasus countryside. Vigilance, an M24 sniper rifle, and an occasional quickload, got me to the airbase fence. A silenced Colt automatic, an OICW assault rifle, and an invaluable recon drone, took me the rest of the way.

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Corner Confessions #1

Corner Confessions is for sharing guilty gaming secrets. The series will, I promise, contain the odd bombshell, but I’m going to kick it off with a thunderflash: Although I’ve been playing truck sims for nigh-on twenty years I’m still pretty hopeless at reversing HGVs.

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A2Z (26 pointlessly alphabetised news snippets)

A is for Awfully big snap. In 2006 six artists turned an abandoned USMC hangar in California into the world’s largest pinhole camera and used it to create the world’s biggest print photograph. While free sim The Great Picture doesn’t shed any light on the technical challenges the artists overcame (lightproofing the hangar required 24,000 square feet of black polythene, developing and fixing the image 1,800 gallons of chemicals and a stupidly large tray) it does let you inspect the giant snap and roam the camera’s interior pondering the silly things humans do in the name of art.

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