The last quarter of 2025 offered me a bit more free time, which I mostly spent unwinding and working on my apps. While I didn’t dive deep into entertainment, I did manage to read a few books, watch some TV shows, and play a handful of games. Still, there weren’t many standout favourites this quarter.
Books
More Everything Forever by Adam Becker
If you’ve been following the tech industry for over a decade like I have, you’ve probably noticed some pretty significant shifts, especially over the last five years. Post-COVID, it seems like tech CEOs have become more involved in politics, pushing certain ideologies that weren’t as prominent before. Back in the day, tech felt more like a space for nerdy innovation, creativity, and problem-solving. Now, it often seems driven by profits, with tech moguls increasingly disconnected from society and the consequences of their actions. There’s a growing presence of influential figures whose opinions and moves dominate the conversation—people like Ray Kurzweil, Peter Thiel, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Nick Bostrom, and Marc Andreessen.
In More Everything Forever, Adam Becker delves into these changes within the tech industry. He highlights how these prominent figures are shaping the future with their personal ideologies, often at the expense of public well-being. The book reveals how their focus isn’t on improving life for ordinary people, but rather on generating fear, promoting controversial ideas (like Mars colonization or transhumanism), and increasing their wealth.
If you’re in the tech world or even just curious about what’s really going on behind the scenes I highly recommend this book. It’s a wake-up call to critically evaluate the actions and motivations of the billionaires steering our digital future.
Status and Culture by David Marx
Another thought-provoking read was Status and Culture by David Marx, which really opened my eyes to the concept of status and how it shapes human behavior. I hadn’t spent much time thinking about status before, mostly because I don’t encounter people who constantly chase it in my daily life. However, in the age of social media and consumerism, understanding the pursuit of status becomes essential. From why people buy certain things to how they behave when interacting with others, this book explores the motivations behind these actions.
Marx does an excellent job breaking down how people seek higher status and the societal shifts that influence these pursuits. He also discusses how cultural trends in the U.S. evolve, with once-exclusive trends eventually trickling down to lower status levels, leaving high-status individuals to chase new trends. While the book is mostly focused on American culture, it offers valuable insights into how status plays out globally, though some of the cultural references may feel unfamiliar if you’re not acquainted with U.S. society.
TV Shows
Mr. Scorsese
This documentary, Mr. Scorsese, about legendary director Martin Scorsese surprised me in the best way. Initially, I thought it might be a bit dry, but once I started watching, I couldn’t stop. The documentary features scenes from Scorsese’s iconic films, with the director himself explaining the stories behind them. While I hadn’t seen many of his older films (Taxi Driver was probably the oldest), I was completely hooked as they dived into more recent classics like Gangs of New York and The Departed.
One thing that really stood out was how resistant Hollywood seemed to be to new ideas, even for a director of Scorsese’s stature. He shared how, at times, it was a struggle to get his vision onto the screen and even harder to secure funding for his projects. It was eye-opening to realize just how difficult it can be, even for the most influential filmmakers.
Acapulco
I had never watched Acapulco, even though it had already wrapped up four seasons. I’m not sure why I never gave it a chance, but when I finally did, I was pleasantly surprised. It turned out to be one of those feel-good shows that’s easy to watch and fun to get lost in. The series tells the story of a wealthy Mexican man reflecting on his rise to success, starting as a pool boy at a luxurious resort in Acapulco. The story unfolds through flashbacks, as he tells his niece about the pivotal moments of his life. It’s charming, light-hearted, and full of humor. If you enjoy comedy-dramas, I highly recommend it. While the fourth season didn’t quite measure up to the first three, the series did a great job wrapping everything up in the final episode.
Pluribus
Pluribus was a bit of a mixed bag for me. There’s a lot of buzz around it, especially since it was written by Vince Gilligan, the mastermind behind Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. The show follows a woman who writes romance novels and, in a post-apocalyptic world, is one of the few people unaffected by a virus that has connected everyone’s minds. The rest of the world feels constant happiness, while the protagonist struggles to adjust to this new reality as an unhappy person.
The premise had a lot of potential, and I liked the concept of exploring what it means to be left out of a collective experience. However, the pacing was incredibly slow, and not much seemed to happen episode to episode. With the next season not arriving until 2027, I’m honestly unsure if it’s a show I’ll be eagerly awaiting. It’s a slow burn, and I’m still on the fence about whether it’s a story I want to keep following.
Games
ARC Raiders
It had been a long time since I tried a game from a completely new genre, but ARC Raiders immediately caught my attention. It’s an extraction shooter set in an apocalyptic world where robots (called ARCs) have taken over the surface, forcing humans to live underground. Each session begins with you heading topside through tunnels, where you explore ruined environments, complete quests, gather loot, and try to make it back safely via metros or elevators.
What makes the experience truly tense is the presence of other players. You can either cooperate to take down ARCs or end up killing each other for loot. That unpredictability is easily the best part of the game—every run feels different, and it’s hard to get bored.
I’ve spent over 30 hours in ARC Raiders, and overall, I really enjoyed it, even though getting killed by other players can be frustrating. The variety in each session keeps things fresh, but the quest design felt a bit dull and not particularly rewarding. Another downside is the downtime after dying: reorganizing your stash and crafting new gear can take quite a while before you’re ready for the next run.
That said, the game shines when played with one or two friends. I’ll definitely keep coming back to it over time.
Anno 117: Pax Romana
I previously played Anno 1800 and loved its setting and progression, so when Anno 117: Pax Romana was announced—set during the peak of the Roman Empire—I was immediately interested. I finally had the chance to play it during the Christmas holidays. Anno 117 is a city-building strategy game where you create and grow settlements on islands. You start with basic worker classes and gradually upgrade them by meeting their needs. Each new class introduces more complex demands, which means careful resource management is essential. On top of that, you also need to consider happiness, fire risk, and public health.
Overall, I had a great time with the game, much like I did with Anno 1800. Once I started playing, I was completely hooked—spending more than 10 hours in a single day wasn’t unusual. From that perspective, the game is very engaging. However, once I reached the late game, things started to feel repetitive. There wasn’t much left to do beyond routine tasks like unlocking everything in research or setting up additional settlements on new islands. While you technically have the freedom to expand endlessly, it eventually starts to feel like chore work rather than meaningful progression.
I played the game via a Ubisoft+ subscription (€18) because I wasn’t sure it was worth paying the full €60. In hindsight, I’m glad I did. The game doesn’t introduce enough new ideas compared to Anno 1800 to justify the full price. If you’re interested, I’d recommend waiting for a discount rather than buying it at launch price.
