Sorry if it seems I'm arguing with everything you say these days, but you do know new adventures in Hifi came after monster?!
Reveal was sublime too, one of their best.There were a handful of tracks on the final 3 that were stunning too.

I really, really miss REM. Been listening to them a lot since the turn of the year. They just don't make them like they used to. The last rock band to make pop music art.

Nah some of them are done quite well & do help squeeze a bit more life out of a game. Obviously a lot of the trophies devs put in are an afterthought, really lazily done (like telltale for instance - all their achievements are rewarded for story progress).

However some people do get addicted to it. There's a guy on my friends list with 55 platinums, and he's probably small fry compared to some obsessive people. & they end up playing Hannah Montana or some horrible shit just to get trophies. It's definitely a weird subculture that's sprung up. But like I say quite a few are pretty fun when they pop-up by accident or design. Tho saying that I can't really think of any off the top of my head right now..

Jeez that's a bit harsh. You must really love your tennis.

I once won a tennis competition when I was a teenager. But afterwards they removed the tennis courts from my town. I guess that means I'm still the champion..

If I was in better temper i'd laugh. Now it just depresses me a bit. The word genius gets thrown around so carelessly. Martin Rev & Alan Vega were maybe geniuses but I wouldn't say that for definite. I quite enjoy NiN & appreciate Reznor but let's not pretend he's some visionary breaking new ground. He's just building on what went before, with added layers of white america solipsism. If you genuinely feel Reznor is a genius, and all kidding aside here, well I dunno what to say without coming across as even more of a dick so I'll quit now.

Nah mate we must be reading & seeing things differently. That kurt loder spot mtv did on bucket is a prime example. Just a set up for a piss take. You can see it on his gormless grin the whole way thru the interview.
The hype & bullshit around the turn of the century wasn't to push the new GnR. It was to belittle them, & Axl. Yea they have the rolling stone puff piece (from '99?) but even it only served up ammunition to mock Axl. For the press it was like shooting fish in a barrel, Axl running around with a circus act in his band looking like some wigger, the press thought it was a freak show. They didn't care about what was (or as it turns out, wasn't) being produced musically. They didn't care that bucket had come thru primus & bootsy collins, they only cared about his appearance. They didn't care to unravel the history of the CD recordings, they just hammered the point about it costing 13million to make.

If anything the UK press, well specifically classic rock, were kinder. In the vain hope Axl would deign to give them an interview, or maybe just to sell copies.

Yea they've definitely misplaced that vibe. The attitude's been diluted. It still survives in the songs & on tape but as far as today goes they kinda depress me tbh!
After he got a bit of money Axl definitely changed. I mean that literally, it was almost like the first thing he did was get his teeth fixed ffs. The idea someone floated about his behaviour/personality just being magnified by money is certainly true but it doesn't make the (I don't want to call them betrayals cause that's too strong a word) contradictions any easier to swallow.
However, saying that, if I had the money believe me I could spend it in stupider ways than Axl.. Well.. Maybe.. I wouldn't be giving it to any fucking yoda's or priests for one thing tho.