can definitely recommend this, but just a head’s up - Google has a habit of hitting the main instance with rate limiting, which causes videos to not load until it gets fixed. but thankfully Piped has multiple instances, so if the main one is down, you can keep watching.

pretty effectively!

I use a Searx instance for searching (with the engine it uses set to DDG), Tutanota for email and Piped/Invidious and Libretube for videos. meanwhile on both my phone and tablet I’ve used ADB to purge all of Google’s malware, and Play Services is outright disabled on my tablet lmao (and contrary to what one might think, the only thing it impacts is I don’t get app notifications)

and then I use Aurora Store to update Twitch and Discord, and I use alternatives from F-Droid for stuff like the calendar

lmao fuck right off Google. there are a million open source alternatives out there that still let me watch videos, nor do I (nor will I) have an account with you clowns.

honestly? Mirror’s Edge Catalyst. fantastic soundtrack, aesthetic, and a scary look into a potential future where society is dominated by the corporations. give it a look if you haven’t; it’s super underrated imo

best series hands down

and if you’re looking to get into the games, I highly recommend Sonic 1 Forever, Sonic 2 Absolute and Angel Island Revisited. they’re all fan-made widescreen remasters with a bunch of bells and whistles that make the experience so much better, and unlike the…questionable compilation that is Sonic Origins, are completely free.

alternatively if you’re just after the games themselves without all of that, you can easily download either Retroarch or Kega and just emulate them. either way you’re gonna enjoy it!

Sonic Mania has co-op! either you can take the lead as Sonic with your son as Tails, or vise versa! it’s a great game, and a great introduction to the Sonic series