2025 update & longgg ramble.

Hello everyone!

There should absolutely be a TLDR for this post, but I have decided not to add one because I don't want to. Summarizing a giant ramble is a lot harder than spewing one out. And a lot less enjoyable. That's what Chat-GPT is for, I suppose. Or Deepseek. Or Copilot? Which AI do you think will be the first to nudge its digital compatriot with a binary-elbow and suggest that the fleshies "need to go" for the world to truly heal itself? I reckon Grok is up there. That one seems relatively unhinged. I wonder why?

Anyway, at the start of January, I started working seriously again on The Goodest Boah Episode 13. When I last left some of the missions I'd been attempting in 2024, I really wasn't sure how interesting the next batch of missions would be. I hadn't dug very deep into what they had to offer; only really scratching the surface of what I would later realise are some of the most intricate and maddening missions the challenge has seen so far. I feel like I say that every time, but man if it isn't true.

Working on this series continues to peel back layers of Red Dead 2 you wouldn't even think are there. Sometimes the layers are littered with ugly and immovable obstacles that make the whole experience feel geared against you. It can be frustrating and plainly unfun. But other times, if you're lucky, the exploration of these layers can lead to discoveries that feel downright sacred. It's like the revelation of forbidden knowledge, or the exhumation of an ancient king's remains. On some Indiana Jones shit. I love it.

About halfway through January, it seemed that the end was near in terms of recording my attempts for the episode. However, just when the finish line was finally in sight, I stumbled across something so significant that it would extend my attempts by another few weeks. This all took place across the final four missions of chapter 3:

• Blessed are the Peacemakers

• A Short Walk in a Pretty Town

• Blood Feuds, Ancient and Modern

• The Battle of Shady Belle

Without giving too much away, I'll tell you now that two of these missions sent me down a deep, dark rabbit hole. I haven't checked for sure, but I'm fairly certain that one of them is the longest I've ever spent attempting a single mission. Hopefully, with my last remaining shreds of sanity, I'll be able to relay the story to you and do it justice.

All of that said, I'm sure it's a little disappointing to hear that progress for the next episode has only now hit its stride. I should be much further along by now, not just in this episode, but in this series total. There's been some hesitation to share channel plans for the year given that I've rarely ever lived up to the goals I've set for the channel, but you deserve to know what you'll be supporting here should you decide to stick around, so here it is!

The plan this year is very simple: 

I will almost exclusively be working on TGB. I’d call it about a 90/10 split between TGB and everything else I make. This means that right now, I unfortunately have no plans to livestream; and progress on stuff like Bruce & Robert, miscellaneous projects or anything peripheral to that will be extremely limited. If I’m being totally honest, I could probably balance streaming as well, practically speaking, but I’m just not in the right space for it at the moment.

I'll take a small detour here to talk about the streams in a bit more detail: The stream-streak was a massive highlight for me last year, and I really thought it was something I could see myself doing every day for a long time. However, my health being where it is, it’s not something I can continue for now. I feel quite boring these days, and I don’t think I can bring much value to the live format. Even in perfect health, I’m not completely certain I’m cut out for the environment that is livestreaming. And that’s after having a very, very positive experience with it all. Seriously, if you were in those streams, thank you for making them as fun as they were and thank you for all the support you showed me. I don’t know, hopefully some of that made sense. Bottom line: It’s not you, it’s me. I swear. 

I understand that this will be disappointing to many of you who enjoy my other stuff. In fact, I suspect that a great majority of my audience has no real interest in Red Dead 2, let alone some challenge-run that's lasted half a decade. I totally get if this is where some of you part ways with my content for a while, until I make things of greater interest to you in the future. I just really need to get this project done. It has become quite a big deal to me that I see it through, and the thought of leaving this box unchecked for another 5 years is somewhat haunting. Is that a bit dramatic? Yes, but it's the truth.

Realistically, I don't know if I'll be able to complete The Goodest Boah this year, but I do know that I'll be a lot closer by 2026. The series still has a long way to go, and every episode pushes the limits of what I'm capable of putting together. It truly feels like such an insurmountable project at times, but I really do love it and I'm desperate for it to see its conclusion. The day somebody can watch the whole series in a playlist, from start to finish, is a day I'd actually like to see in my lifetime.

With all that being said, don’t be surprised if you see at least some non-TGB related videos from me this year. I’ve allotted myself time away from the ‘torture’ here and there, it’s just a lot more structured and limited than before to ensure I keep on track. I’m currently editing down a very long LEGO Batman 1 video in my free time (that anyone who watched the streams in 2024 will recognize) as my TGB palette cleanser. 

Above all else, I just hope I can make some things you enjoy this year. More than 4 videos would be nice. I’m aiming to actually start releasing stuff again in February, both on the channel and here on Patreon. There is of course TGB Episode 13 on the horizon, as well as the Behind the Scenes videos that I owe you for Episode 11 and 12 — though, I think I'll need to make some changes to how those are made to ensure they actually come out on time this year.

Alright, that’s it for now. I’ve rambled on long enough here. Jesus, who’s actually reading an update post this long? If you got to this point, I appreciate it. Truthfully, I wish I had more than an update post for you by now, but it just didn't pan out that way. My main focus for the last few months has been slowly getting my mental and physical health back to a manageable state, which took a lot more time and effort than I was hoping. 

As always, thank you all for the support and for giving a shite about what I make in any capacity. It’s always been heart warming to know that I am not just throwing things into an empty void and that someone might actually get some value out of it. Thanks for reading all this and I hope you’ve been doing well. See ya soon.

Cheers!