I booted up Hearts of Iron IV and spent the first hour just staring at production queues and wondering why nothing felt like it was moving. Nearly closed it twice.

Then my infantry divisions crossed into Belgium and the front lines actually started to tell their own story on the map. Watching those units inch forward while the supply lines stretched behind them pulled me in deeper than I expected.

The national focus tree still lost me though, too many branches that never seemed to connect to what was happening on the ground. In the end it was the slow grind of keeping armies supplied that stuck with me more than any big victory.

Grabbed Graveyard Keeper 2 after work and ended up chasing that old town founder lead straight into the crypt. A pack of rats swarmed me while I was hauling the shovel and ingredients back, and I had to time every swing just right to clear them without losing the body.

The whole scrap felt fair for once, no cheap stuns or invisible walls, just straight skill and the right mix of medicine to stay on my feet. I actually wanted to keep going after that.

What killed it was the material limit kicking in right after, couldn't build the next plot without running the same loop three times in a row. Threw the whole night off.

Went back after dropping it a few weeks ago and saw the objective timing actually lines up better than I first thought. The setup phase matters more than it looks on paper.

One stretch I held the point alone for what felt like the whole middle of the match while the rest of the team moved into place. Abilities take their time coming back so you mostly adjust position and wait for the right window.

Twenty minutes breaks down into long stretches of moving into line and short bursts when something finally connects. It never really speeds up.

Marvel Rivals keeps the same measured rhythm even with the new maps and heroes.
https://dfaceme.com/game/marvel-rivals