ToastyMann

While I’m recording footage for the Bayonetta 3 review, I thought I’d pop my head in regarding a topic I released a commentary about earlier in the year.

Pro Skater 3 + 4 dropped back in July, and I already didn’t plan on buying it for the reasons I bitched about in that video. Well it turns out a lot of my nihilistic predictions weren’t entirely unfounded. The Pro Skater 4 Career is sloppy and doesn’t flow well, the tone and humor were watered down, objectives were simplified or removed, several levels are just missing entirely, and the Steam page was updated after launch to disclose the fact that the game is chalk full of AI generated assets. Real punk and skater-pilled of these developers, right?

The game didn’t seem to sell all that well, it even already went on discount last month, and the mixed reviews paint a very telling picture about its quality. I don’t like gloating about games being bad, because I don’t WANT them to be bad. However I won’t lie when I say I do admittedly feel a little vindicated about my stubborn complaining.

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1 week ago | [YT] | 7

ToastyMann

The Bayonetta 2 video is almost done. Yes. For real this time. No more delays.

I'll be stitching a channel update at the end instead of the usual black text slides, so if you want some info and you're not interested in Bayonetta, you can just skip to that. Estimation for a time of upload is either tomorrow night or Monday morning.

1 month ago | [YT] | 12

ToastyMann

Another update, sorry for the extended wait, but the editing for Bayonetta 2 is well underway. Hope to have it ready for you all soon. In the meantime, I’d like to share a bit of an important PSA. Please take the time to read all of this, it’s really for your own good.

The United Kingdom has recently passed a bill known as the “UK’s Online Safety Act”. Veiled as an attempt to “protect children”, it gave the British government the power to require any website they deem “harmful or dangerous” to mandate users upload sensitive information such as an ID or facial scan to access content. Masked as a way to keep kids off of NSFW sites, it quickly snowballed into websites that are universally seen as perfectly fine like Wikipedia. Coincidentally, the UK formed a secret network of agents to scan social media posts in the region to track down anyone with problematic posts or opinions. The United Kingdom basically became an Orwellian fascist regime overnight, and that’s not an exaggeration. President Trump even called out Prime Minister Starmer for forcing a massive censorship wave onto his people. The UK government has received a petition with over 400K signatures and counting to repeal the act, while they double down and insist that anyone opposing this blatant breach of privacy and security is on the side of predators.

Now, not only are several companies (like this very website known as YouTube) planning to roll out this ID verification internationally across UK boarders, not only is the UK pressuring American websites like Reddit to censor by UK standards, but the EU and Australia are set to roll out identical laws soon. Even our United States has a similar bill that entered congress for the third time titled “The Kids’ Online Safety Act”. This is not a coincidence, there is a coordinated effort by international governments and corporations to censor and de-anonymize the internet at large. Why? Control of information, mass surveillance, potentially AI training, and financial incentives.

If you’re an American, contact your state officials and get the word out about this incoming oppressive censorship wave. Tell them that such legislation is not welcome in a free country like the United States, and users should never be forced to upload personal information to access information online. Second, regardless of where you live, GET A VPN! Avoid the ones that you see sponsor YouTubers because they’re owned by advertising agencies that harvest your data and will gladly hand it over to untrustworthy parties. Mullvad VPN is your best bet because they store absolutely nothing and your privacy is guaranteed. Downloading some kind of Tor browser is also recommended for extra security.

Ignore what politicians from the UK and whatnot try to gaslight you into believing, DO NOT UPLOAD YOUR OFFICIAL ID ONLINE! That’s a massive security breach waiting to happen. Stay safe, get the right tools to keep yourself private, and keep spreading the word about this. Last but not least, please don’t politicize this issue into a “left vs right” narrative. This is serious and not the time for glorified sports team discourse. I love the internet and I’d hate for it to succumb to foreign governments and corporations’ lust for control.

2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 12

ToastyMann

Hope you guys are enjoying your summer so far. The absence of content is sure to end soon, but first, I’ve got a commentary video cooking up in time for the 4th of July. Pic low-key related (not the MAIN topic of the video). Hope to see you guys then.

Yeah I know, no reviews even by the start of July, but it is what it is and I’ll try to make up for it for the rest of the year.

2 months ago | [YT] | 11

ToastyMann

About time I break the silence.

It’s been going on almost six months since I last uploaded a review, which is my worst pace yet. You might be wondering *why* this long wait has taken place without as much as a peep from me. Is this fabled Bayonetta 2 review another multi-hour long analysis like last year’s Klonoa retrospective? Nope, in fact the final script is actually just a little over 12 pages, which is about the average length of a review on this channel. Have there been technical difficulties regarding aspects of video creation? Not really.

I’ll be brutally honest and say that the video still hasn’t surfaced because I have actively avoided the project for a long time before actually doubling down on finishing the script. I reached the end of the game in January, ThePaintHuffer’s thumbnail was finished back in February, but I don’t know if it was burnout, creative roadblocks, low personal morale, stuff happening in life to and around me, or multiple of the above, but I just didn’t even want to think about it and left it on the back burner for months. I tried to fill the gap by getting a commentary out back in March, but even that took almost a month itself just to finish. It didn’t feel satisfying to get done, considering I got the Oogie’s Revenge review posted in less than that.

Life in general has just been one giant headache for months. Nothing severe has happened, but it’s more like a constant stream of papercuts that make you go “what the fuck?”. To quell concerns, I’m doing just fine. Not much has really changed for me, it’s just a few frustrating moments of life happening, as well as a load of stress regarding people around me that I’d rather not get into due to privacy concerns. My free time has exclusively spent doing other things besides video creation to the point where it essentially escaped my mind for the first time in almost three years. I barely want to show my face here right now if I’m being completely honest.

I think I just needed a break from it due to life shit and overall fatigue. Hell, as I’m writing this I’m wrapping up an actual vacation I took off from work. I appreciate all of you for staying patient, and I apologize for not communicating as much as I really should, but that’s likely for the best as I’ve felt frustrated about a lot of things, and if I were to say something here regarding something random I felt negative about, I potentially would’ve regretted it in the future due to potential aggression.

Whenever I make these kinds of “sorry for the wait” posts, I tend to get a few comments telling me that it’s totally fine no matter how long it takes. I get that, it’s not my job after all, but I always wanted to push myself to keep some kind of consistent output, not only for the sake of self-respect, but for you guys as a “thank you” for coming here in the first place. Keeping this channel going as a passion project has been a great outlet for me to share my thoughts which indirectly helped my personal life. Right now I feel very disappointed in myself for essentially keeping this channel locked in the closet for nearly half a year as I chug along in life wasting time, and as a result the roadmap of videos I wanted out this year is now nullified.

So here’s the plan; Bayonetta 2 will possibly surface this month. Bayonetta 3 will quickly follow, but no date promised yet. After that there’s another video I had planned once the retrospective is over, but I don’t know if I’ll have time for another by the end of the year. Because of how uneventful 2025 has been contrary to my promises in January, I don’t think I’ll even be doing an end-of-year recap for 2025. As for that previously announced 2nd channel, it’s something I still want to do but there’s simply no time for it right now.

That’s that, I guess I’ll see you guys soon once the Bayonetta 2 review goes up.

3 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 9

ToastyMann

Quick update, got a commentary video coming this weekend about a certain remake (HOLY SHIT TOASTY BITCHING ABOUT REMAKES AGAIN LETS GOOOOO), although the Bayonetta 2 video is still a way’s away from being done. Basically, it’s been put off for a while due for multiple reasons, but I’ll spare you the details for now. It’ll be done when it’s done.

In the meantime, it would be pretty neat if you went and saw “The Day The Earth Blew Up” which is in theaters RIGHT NOW! It’s a really fun watch, but it’s such a shame that people are only hearing about it from word of mouth due to mediocre marketing. Go watch it, it’s great. It’s a Looney Tunes movie without any gimmicks. No basketball, no celebrity fileting, no Rick and Morty cameo, no Brendan Fraser, just a good ol’ fashioned 2D-animated movie which is a rarity in theaters these days. (Art on the left by Treymations)

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6 months ago | [YT] | 14

ToastyMann

Hey everyone!

Thought I’d give you all a quick update. The Bayonetta 2 video is still in production for a variety of reasons, family matters certainly play a part in that on top of some other factors I’d rather not bore you with the details of, alongside some writer’s block for good measure.

I’m gonna try and get the Bayonetta 2 video out ASAP (no date promised), with Bayo 3 set for May, and for a bonus I’ve got a commentary cooking up as well to make up for the silence. This year’s looking to be busy in a lot of areas so I hope I can at least get the projects I want done before it’s over with. Life changes a lot in your early 20’s.

As for the announcement of that alternate commentary channel I made not too long ago, I’m gonna hold it off for now because I’d rather focus on Bayonetta 2. It’s absolutely going to happen this year so keep an eye out for that. Plans are ambitious, but life gets in the way and priorities need to be in order. Happy Spring, I hope you guys are all doing well, and I’ll see you soon enough for the Bayonetta 2 video.

6 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 7

ToastyMann

Hey everyone, hope 2025 has been kind to you so far. The next video is deep into production, but for now, I’d like to reach out for some feedback regarding some plans I’ve been thinking about.

This channel doesn’t really receive very many commentary videos simply because I want it to be centered around discussing video games, or at least art and pop culture in general. The problem is that most topics I could make a video about aren’t really interesting enough for me to write entire scripts around, when I can just dump my thoughts into a paragraph and post it somewhere else. Not to mention a lot of it has to do with the absolute sewage dump that is the culture war, something I’ve grown to despise.

However, part of me has the urge to create other commentary videos about other things. Social topics, random stories from my life to tell, current events, maybe even just flat out complaining about random crap. Since this channel is dedicated to gaming/media coverage, how would you guys feel if I created a separate channel to house these different kinds of videos without clogging up the main channel?

8 months ago | [YT] | 8

ToastyMann

Tomorrow.

9 months ago | [YT] | 4

ToastyMann

Hey everyone, hope you’re having a happy holiday. Thought I’d check in with another update.

I’m finally a man of my word for once, and the next video will be up on Christmas Eve! HOWEVER, for those anticipating Bayonetta 2, you’re gonna be disappointed to find out that something else will be uploaded on Tuesday.

I wanted to do something more festive for Christmas, and the Bayonetta retrospective will continue in 2025. Tuesday’s video will be full-length just as promised though. It’s a game that I’ve wanted to touch for a long time but never found the time and was planning on skipping it yet again this year, but something pushed me to just crunch like mad to get this out in time for Christmas due to the game’s subject matter being more appropriate for the holiday season, but that’s giving away too much. You’ll find out once the video is uploaded.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Happy Shut The Fuck Up, all that good stuff. See you Tuesday!

9 months ago | [YT] | 9