Right now I am testing Kagi, which is a paid alternative - from a privacy point of view, it looks great, and the results are good. It also has a lot of additional features that suit me well. No Maps integration though. alternatively, I can recommend SearXNG, but it involves a bit of tinkering.

For me it was good since the beginning, but it had its issues. Now it is a much better experience, that is true too. There is also a pretty good modding scene, so many parts that are still not ok can be modded out. Personally, I will probably play it again when the DLC releases in September.

For me same with both! I found them greatly over hyped, but that is fine - plenty of other great games to play.

That would be great, but we were also hyped before release of the base game…

For me that would be Stellaris - after so many hours, playing it just feels natural and it is a very relaxing exercise!