Currently playing Tales of Phantasiap (GBA ver.), and I'm finishing up the last bit of sidequests before I take on the final area/boss of the game. Really enjoying my play-through - so much so that I can't believe I missed out on this back during its original release. Battle mechanics are great, game controls really well, characters are decently fun, and the graphics are great for the GBA conversion.
You might want to check JP. He just recently started the collection and we talk about it on Nintendo Free Radio 18.
Right now, after Megaman 3 convinced me I'm bad at games, I started playing Super Ghouls N' Ghosts because hey if your going to be bad at something be bad at the hardest.
I'm already past level 4 :cool; (with a heavy abuse of the single save state)You might want to check JP. He just recently started the collection and we talk about it on Nintendo Free Radio 18.
Message sent. If anyone else wants some before WiiConnect dies off, I'd be happy to oblige.QuoteRight now, after Megaman 3 convinced me I'm bad at games, I started playing Super Ghouls N' Ghosts because hey if your going to be bad at something be bad at the hardest.
What could possibly go wrong? Good luck with this. I enjoy playing the G'nG series on and off, but probably have never gotten past level 3 in any of the games from the series. Fun times.
jvgsjeff, did you import the New Leaf or do you live in Japan? Because the game is not out yet in other regions.A retailer may have broken street date.
jvgsjeff, did you import the New Leaf or do you live in Japan?
I´m currently playing Aliens: Infestation on DS. Think its great so far, the only problem i´m having is keeping people alive when I encounter bosses, think I have lost about 6 soldiers.
Probably my favvorite Alien game since Alien vs Predator on PC (1999), it really captures the mood from the movies.
I´m currently playing Aliens: Infestation on DS. Think its great so far, the only problem i´m having is keeping people alive when I encounter bosses, think I have lost about 6 soldiers.
Probably my favvorite Alien game since Alien vs Predator on PC (1999), it really captures the mood from the movies.
I enjoyed that game too. I managed to get to the last boss without losing a character (by which I mean, I reloaded when I lost a character). When I finally did let them die in facing the last boss it was really very satisfying, lol.
I can understand why people don´t like permadeath, but I have always liked it. For me it makes the game all the more exciting when you have to be more carful with your resources.
And in this particular game I think it lends greatly to the overall feel and suspense (allthough it´s not real permadeath). In the movies the aliens are much stronger then the humans and there are going to be alot of casualties.
More notes on Kid Icarus Uprising.I know a few levels require 9 pretty early on for an achievement. I'll have to dig out my copy. Though I think its good that the stronger weapons are earned with the higher difficulty.
Interestingly, intensity level does not actually set difficulty for the level. It does look like difficulty setting, but it's really not.
Yes, monsters DO get harder and more dangerous, but once you get through flying section, land section will let you just run past the majority of monsters and you can skip all the additional mini-bosses and optional secrets and arenas as you like.
I've been trying to beat the first level on intensity 9 and did it yesterday, After you get through sky section, i just ran, not stopping for anything, right to the boss arena. Twinbellows on 9 is rather tough, and i mostly have been dying on him during my seven or so tries to beat the level.
The game doesn't even reward you in any way except for more points for beating chapters on higher levels. I didn't get any achievements or anything for beating level on 9. Yes there are achievements requiring minimal intensity, but from what i've seen it's just measly 5 or 6.
Intensity is all about loot and points. By running past everything you miss on a lot of hearts and sometimes won't even get back the amount of hearts you put in the cauldron when you made the bet.
Running through Persona 4: Golden on Vita now. I loved the original on the PS2, and since I've obviously run through all the games in my backlog, I figured now would be a good time to dig into this version. I think the silly rumour running around since someone registered the Persona5 website got me itching to play this game again.
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Geometry Wars 1
Good old Geometry Wars. How does second game fare? Wii/DS games? I think my local games shop had Geometry War: Galaxies for a few bucks.
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Mirror's EdgeYeah, tried "left handed" layout and it's not working for me. It's a shame they don't allow to fully customize controls and we just have four presets to choose from. "Inverted shoulders" setting feels the best so far.
I was using standard controller layout for tutorial and first level, and entire time pressing LB to jump was weird. It also feels like putting aiming on left stick would have worked better with this kind of game, rather than using "standard" first person shooter configuration with "LS walks, RS aims". I will experiment with other layouts next time when i will play the game.
Damn, you play a lot of games.Beats sitting and whining on forums all the time.
Beats sitting and whining on forums all the time.
i still sit and whine on forums anyway
I checked it out yesterday. My impression:Played a bit further. It definitely improves.
(http://gifatron.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/arrested-development-dont-know-what-expected.gif)
Based from impressions online i thought i'd see more than just a fan-made level pack. Stupid me.
Assasin Creed: Brotherhood
Near the end.
Full synchronization feels like it was made to force you to play missions at least twice. Still getting those meaningless 100% and completing all random quests is probably my favorite part of the game so i don't mind much.
Economics system is kinda wonky and confusing but workable. Shop quests add another level to overall already super collectathon-ish nature of the game.
Assassin's contract management is actually pretty fun. I find myself spending too much time there.
After the ending i will still have:
- to complete romulus lairs (love PoP-style platforming, that enormous labyrinth level though... and you have to make it in 8 minutes too...),
- get all feathers (just three left, at least there are only ten of those),
- will ignore borgia flags, because no way i'm roaming around just to collect 60+ i have left,
- definitely will upgrade all the buildings (almost done just 1-2 left of each type), not sure if i will get all landmarks cause they're pricey and i'm not getting enough money (and it doesn't even look like it's worth it anyway, i bought Coliseum and it's giving measly 40 florins, why bother),
- will definitely try to get all portraits.
- oh yeah and those Truth puzzles (not enjoying them as much as in ACII, those decrypting puzzles with weird symbols got too confusing)
- might try to get at least some Guild mission challenges, i've already almost filled Assasin's Guild on
Then don't play it.
Enjoy the rest of the last (and only) good Assassin's Creed game.Nah, i loved all games so far in the series.
I got crackdown for free on GFG so i'm replaying that.
GFG is nowhere near on the same level of selection as PS+. Don't put them I'm the same league.when you reveal your service by announcing that the first two free games are ones that have had at least 3 sequels each there really isn't much contest.
This is the point where TJ Spyke runs in and argues the fact that you can't keep the dozens of games a year you get from PlayStation Plus completely nullifies its existence.
GFG is nowhere near on the same level of selection as PS+. Don't put them I'm the same league.
This is the point where TJ Spyke runs in and argues the fact that you can't keep the dozens of games a year you get from PlayStation Plus completely nullifies its existence.
Once I can play KZ:Merc on my Vita TV, then I'll be happy. For some reason the controls felt really bad to me so I ended up playing three minutes of the beta and deleting it.
Can't I just use the built in cursor interface to bypass that?
The story for me the first run left me scratching my head in a mass of confusion, so what I've done is read through game faqs, wiki, etc. on the history and in combination of beating it once and now knowing even more backstory the games really gelled perfectly.Yes, story is quite incomprehensible. Watching game's director commentary (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwvSd4kcfdk) helped to give it a bit more sense, but even after watching most of it it still doesn't quite feel complete. Thankfully Kamiya's next game (W101) has a much better plot.
After playing the Wonderful 101 demo three times I've noticed similar instances with what Platinum has done there too.Yes, they're very, very similar. I even created a thread (http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=42496.0) where i talk about comparison between two games.
Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands (Wii game on Wii U)No, should be available. I have played it but have not finished the main game. I can't remember how you access it but fiddle around with the menus. It is there.
Cover says that has original game is included -- i'm guessing it will only unlock after i beat the game, right?
Got my copy of GTA V today, so I'll be able to take a break from poopsocking it in Final Fantasy XIV. Man, that game is great, despite every effort by Square-Enix to sabotage it. The MMO community is just as I remember it; a disheartening blend of assholes, noobs, try-hards, and some decent folk looking to have some fun.What server are you playing on? Sounds like the wrong one. Join my Backloggery gang and I (Lindy's with us, too!) on Hyperion. LOTS of helpful folks there.
I hear The Wonderful 101 is a pretty short game.You've been lied to:
Are you trying to get/unlock everything?Unlocking everything is nearly impossible, but yes.
I'm just trying to beat the game.That will take you about 15+ hours.
Then, no, I wasn't lied to.I'm just trying to beat the game.That will take you about 15+ hours.
^ i'm just noting that you consider game with initial playthrough worth of 15+ hours as «short», yet at the very same time think of 15 hour 100% playthrough of Eternal Darkness as significant timesink.No. I didn't. And I would appreciate if you would stop putting words in my mouth in an attempt to make me sound like a hypocrite.
Final Fantasy XIV. I'm actually surprised about how much fun I'm having. I'm a Cat-Girl Lancer. :)OBLIVION! What server, yo?! Join Hyperion!
I'm in Mateus. :( I'd have to create a completely new character to join up with you, right?Nope. In a few days, the World Transfer service is going to open up, and for the first five days, it'll be free to transfer over one character of your choosing. Go for it. We have a blast on Hyperion!
That actually reminds me. Is Hyperion stable yet? Is it past the initial MMO launch rush?Yes, absolutely. I mean, sure, there's going to be maintenance to all servers in time. But as far as the initial instability and login errors are concerned...it's all fantastic now.
I'm not one to gush over graphics especially since I've had a PS3 for over four years.
HD is just part of gaming now. I look back at the progression of graphics from a few pixels to the HD era. We've come a long way, but the longer you're exposed to something, the less you appreciate it. However, great art design, to me, can be timeless. The Wind Waker definitely has that appeal. We've all seen HD collections of PS2 games. They don't hold up as well as The Wind Waker. Update Twilight Princess (and possibly Skyward Sword), it wouldn't look as good.
I picked up the The Bard's Tale in the latest Humble Bundle and am playing it in Linux. Great sense of humor, I can see why it has such a good reputation.Is this a remake of the old Commodore 64 game? I loved that game as a kid.
Oh also, you're spot on about the Gamepad map. A persistent interactive map could have been a game-changer, but instead they slapped on an ugly, slightly expanded, untouchable minimap. Yech.Dammit, i was hoping this map was so empty and busted because i haven't unlocked something yet. I'm still very, very early in the game.
Last night i finished Haytham missions. Let me tell you, it was like 2 am and i was very tired and sleepy and but DAT ending made me go "WAIT, WHAT?!" along with Desmond. I literally sat up in my bed. I now vaguely remember something about that reveal before game's release, but thankfully i forgot all of it. Man, it was a great moment!
It pumped me up enough to stay for two more hours playing as Haytham's son. I really liked new tree climbing mechanics -- it's so fast and smooth. Hunting.. was eh, it's okay i guess.
Last night i finished Haytham missions. Let me tell you, it was like 2 am and i was very tired and sleepy and but DAT ending made me go "WAIT, WHAT?!" along with Desmond. I literally sat up in my bed. I now vaguely remember something about that reveal before game's release, but thankfully i forgot all of it. Man, it was a great moment!
It pumped me up enough to stay for two more hours playing as Haytham's son. I really liked new tree climbing mechanics -- it's so fast and smooth. Hunting.. was eh, it's okay i guess.
I've been thinking about that reveal for quite a while now, and I was wondering what kind of impact it would have had on someone who hadn't played any of the previous games. I thought it was pretty cool the way they played around with my expectations like that.
I've read some reviews for Arkham Origins, and it irks me that so many outlets are down on this game just because it doesn't change anything about the series. So far, I'm having a great time being the gotdamned Batman again. Not every game in a series needs to be a revolution for it to be a solid outing. Of course, 25% off, and being visually stunning on PC helps a lot. There isn't too much to say about the game, since it's so similar to Arkham City, just bigger.
Bayonetta:
Platinumed Tower to Truth and now i am just two boss levels away from full platinum row on normal.
Feels pretty good.
While i am 97 hours into the game i still didn't use most of the weapons. i only used guns, shotguns, bazookas and lately lightning claws. Still have to learn how to use whip and sword properly.
Dark Souls:
Played for another hour. Killed that tall black armour dude. Used the same trick as before for both previous bosses: lured him out and positioned him near ladders, then climbed to the roof (he can't climb) and jumped off swinging with an axe. Then few dodges and i repeat the routine.
Now i think i have to kill that steel boar thingy. Game gave me special skulls that attract monsters and i tried throwing them from the bridge above hoping boar will stand where i will be able to do the same jumping trick, but no dice.
Still have no idea what humanity system does. Or kindling. Or reverse hollowing. Sometimes i get humanity as an item and sometimes it just says i have 1 humanity.
Whatever.
I would highly recommend playing through Dark Souls with a guide. It's systems and items and whatnot are just too arcane otherwise, especially if you're playing offline. But here's one tip: do NOT use the Fire Keeper Soul you find in the church, give it to a Fire Keeper to boost your estus.I had no idea what you just said, but thanks i'll keep that in mind.
It's a crime to write about Hotline Miami and not mention it's amazing music. These tracks coupled with overall atmosphere will make feel you like serial killer yourself.
Music is the best part of it, considering gameplay while very good was hampered by numerous critical bugs in PC/Steam version.
There was no bumping into the wall animation
Super Mario 3d World (Wii U):
After "finishing" the game, i can now say that bosses are kinda bad in this game. Mostly because there aren't really all that many of them. Galaxy 1 and 2 i think had more and all were very different.
Car boss encounter takes way too much time. Square boss was probably the best.
I think i liked 3d Land bosses more simply because it reproduced SMB1 boss battles with the bridge and a button and made it work and also because of the final final boss level. I remember that i was really blown away with awesome music, scenery and tenacity of the boss who just wouldn't give up.
Final final boss level in 3D World is very cool and it makes a lot of sense for what the game is, but i wasn't as amazed by it. Probably because it wasn't non-stop run as 3d land's battle and i was constantly forced to stop and wait.
I still hadn't reached final final final level, so that may change though.
I like how game gets trollish at times. Not as trollish as "I wanna be the guy" or Cat Mario (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1Eyz8HgA_A) but it does have it's fair share of tricks. Like if you enter the stage and see flagpole right away, there's going to be more to it than meets the eye. And that even happens more than once.
Still can't find the damned stamp in 6-3, at least i can grind there for lives while i am looking for it after few later levels demolished my lives counter (namely Red Hot Run (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJQTdHLTCU8) and Grumblump inferno (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1BcbAZl6DM) [if you click on this video, humanity will be wiped from history because of intensity of the spoilers within, so please don't]).
Double cherry is very cool and but kinda underutilized. Game encourages you to get an army of clones and spam fireballs but apart from that there are no advantages to having a lot of clones. So they put gates that block you from getting stars and stamps that require you having clones inside the level to justify having this power-up.
Boomerang still remains the most useful power-up.
Rosalina's spin move makes the game closer to Galaxy because you now can be more sloppy and not forced to jump on everyone's head. Rosalina's Fire dress is even more gorgeous that Peach's.
I finally played Kid Icarus: Uprising. It's good, but the controls are terrible... for a left handed person.It works good with finger/thumb stylus if you have original 3DS (also left-handed). 3DS XL's touchpad got too big so right thumb can't reach the entire area of it now.
Insano, playing on the toilet much?
Been playing Mutant Mudds (3DS). That game gets a lot of love... but I'm not feeling any.
Difficulty is almost always of the "cheap" variety, with projectiles from off-screen enemies being one of my least favorite ways to die. Controls are ok, but have a bunch of little oddities (small extra height boost from jetpack, weird momentum) that makes everything feel slightly less natural and tight than I like in a platformer. Level design is more often boring than anything.
Feels like a throwback to the Commander Keen-type platformer, so maybe if you have nostalgia for old-school PC platformers it would be more appealing? Although they were fun back in the day, I have no interest in revisiting those games and now wish I had listened to my gut after playing the demo and skipped this game despite the strong reviews it had garnered from some corners.
:(
Agreed. I did enjoy Mutant Mudds before the released all the extra levels - but the new stuff was so punishing and repetitive that, sadly, I never finished it and don't really intend to. There's "I'm going to make this jump hard" challenging, then there's "I'm going to make this jump require pixel-perfect accuracy and missing it is going to delete your save file and make you start over" challenging. ;)
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Hydroventure: Spin cycle (aka Fluidity: Spin cycle, 3DS):
First wiiware game was so, so good. When they made second one "better fit for handheld experience" dividing one interconnected world into many smaller levels they largely destroyed a lot what made the first game so good. Now to collect everything you have to replay same levels doing the same stuff over and over again, oh and also you have to be perfect about it so you can get five stars.
Year after i got it i barely got through second world -- replaying the same levels to collect stuff is just not fun at all (https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYQHAAABAACNUKEc3eUILQ) D:
World of Tanks. Played a couple hours. An alright time waster. Had a look at the money store. The prices were at the "Go get fucked level". A very expensive free to play game.
World of Tanks (Xbox 360 version):It's kinda shallow. Nothing really to it -- just a regular third person shooter of sorts with tanks of course.It's alright i guess, but i don't see myself really getting into it.
For modern games, I've been playing Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (Wii U). I really like it, but I'm confused at the critical response to this game. A lot of critics say ACIV "saved the franchise", since ACIII was so poorly reviewed. I don't get it, since I feel like ACIV has a lot of the same problems and frustrations that ACIII has - weird controls, annoying tailing/eavesdropping missions and instant desychronization. Personally, I enjoy both so I don't understand the huge difference in critical opinion.
Unepic. I'm enjoying it. Made me laugh a few times from the banter between the two characters. Nothing special in terms of gameplay mechanics so far. I would say it's Demon's/Dark Souls in 2D, but the mood isn't as brooding.
Dark Souls (PC):
Game finally started to open up a bit. I've opened most of the doors in undead burg. Met Capra Demon -- yeah, i will get to him later once i level up a bit and figure out all that magic stuff.
I've met sorcerer and the other dude who promised me miracles, not quite sure what's difference between them are but whatevs. Also apparently there are different kinds of miracles and different kinds of magic depending on which school or covenant you join?.. I'll figure it out eventually i guess.
Saw the priest dude in the church who shoot lightnings. From afar. The other stone headless dude who also shoots lightning was awaiting me under the smithy -- i tried to hit him but i guess he's inulvnerable or something. I just ran past him and got to forest. Then i wandered there a bit, killed a few trees until i met two huge undead knights who engaged me from both sides of the corridor... Yeah...
I also wandered a bit around Firelink Shrine. Apparently the giant crow that carried me here is still sitting there. For some reason i never noticed it, though i did hear it screeching.
Walked around the graveyard under Firelink shrine. Skeletons are annoying and apparently can only be killed by riposte. It's cool i guess, but very hard to pull of when you have a few of them on you.
By the way riposte sound effect is one the most satisfying sounds ever.
Apparently there is something wrong with PC version because i have a rather noticeable sound lag which throws me off a bit when i climb ladders and hear someone's steps. These are actually my steps they just sound a second after they should be.
Visited New Londo Ruins, but didn't found enough bravery in me to cross the bridge across the bog. Probably the creepiest area of them all so far, ugh.
Isn't this why restore points exist?Yes, probably. I went right for the save option due to force of habit. I was only pointing out how I forgot about A Link to the Past's save structure. I haven't played the game in over a decade. I thought it was like Link's Awakening where you start from the last entrance you used.
Bit Trip Runner 2: Rhythm something something funny subtitle:
Got the game on sale on eShop last night. Ended up playing for three hours after starting it (https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYQHAAABAAAhUqFKzHuhnw)... Great, addicting game.
Visual get somewhat busy for me though. Sometimes my vision gets confused as what obstacle exactly is coming up next and i mess up (or i just suck). Despite featuring simpler visuals, retro levels have even more of that -- you can easily miss a golden brick because it blends with a background (or it was the intention?).
Leaderboards amongst friends is a very cool feature -- even somewhat generic games can becomes very addicting simply because you want to trump your friends' records over and again. I had it with AiRace Speed and Zen Pinball and looking at yet another competition here...
He's the King of Star Wars Pinball too. I hate that guy.Bit Trip Runner 2: Rhythm something something funny subtitle:
Got the game on sale on eShop last night. Ended up playing for three hours after starting it (https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYQHAAABAAAhUqFKzHuhnw)... Great, addicting game.
Visual get somewhat busy for me though. Sometimes my vision gets confused as what obstacle exactly is coming up next and i mess up (or i just suck). Despite featuring simpler visuals, retro levels have even more of that -- you can easily miss a golden brick because it blends with a background (or it was the intention?).
Leaderboards amongst friends is a very cool feature -- even somewhat generic games can becomes very addicting simply because you want to trump your friends' records over and again. I had it with AiRace Speed and Zen Pinball and looking at yet another competition here...
Yoshidious aka Greg 'The Sweet Prince' Leahy seems to be the reigning king of Bit Trip Runner.
He's the King of Star Wars Pinball too. I hate that guy.Befriend me, see my Zen Pinball 3D scores and weep ;p
I shall do just that! I am always up for some more self-loathing.He's the King of Star Wars Pinball too. I hate that guy.Befriend me, see my Zen Pinball 3D scores and weep ;p
SpaceChem (Steam demo):
I always wanted to get into it but it just looked so intimidating. Yesterday i watched this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTRt0gtNSVk) and it explained mechanics of the game enough for me to start it.
It feels like... work. Not because it's tedious or boring but because that exactly what i do for work. I am programmer and i get paid to solve problems exactly like that. I still enjoy SpaceChem, a lot, just as much i do enjoy devising good algorithmic solutions and implement them in my project AND get paid for it. So it feels weird to do this for fun and spend brain cells that you otherwise save for work. I might never actually buy full game because of this...
It doesn't feel like that with other puzzle game, because Spacechem is probably as close to programming as game gets -- it's basically post machine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post–Turing_machine) and it's complete (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turing_completeness) meaning that you can compute anything with it if you put enough effort.
Interface is weird and needs a bit more polish but workable. Game is borked at the moment (http://steamcommunity.com/app/92800/discussions/0/630802979715100397/) but there's a workaround.
You ever hear of this? http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2014/01/robot_odyssey_the_hardest_computer_game_of_all_time.htmlNo (born and raised in Soviet Union, remember?), but it looks interesting enough. Though it seems there is no modern port of it to any platform. There was some guy who said he's done homebrew DS port of it but he's gone silent since 2009,
I played Outlast on PS4 for a good 10 minutes before I realized I can't play the game for the same reason I can't bring myself to watch horror movies anymore: I don't like being startled/scared.Same: i have no idea why i bought Fatal Frame 2 on Wii -- because i don't see myself playing it in any near future because of this.
Total Extreme Wrestling 2013, by Greydog Software. I think only the nerdiest of wrestling fans have heard of it, but I can spend all day buidling my promotion and getting my guys over. Think the GM mode in the WWE games but far more extensive. Tough learning curve, but once you get the hang of it, it's fun.
I watched the first few episodes of the anime, but it didn't really catch my attention. If I didn't find the anime all that exciting, is the game any different?
Also, *facepalm* at the Titanfall beta. I signed up for the PC beta, and I've now received TWO Xbox One beta keysYou should sell those, make some money.
I've heard that Titanfall succeeds at making noobs feel better about their crappy skills, which is great since I'm a noob.Well the first weapon in the game is a smart gun, which has a reticule taking half of a screen and it auto-aims to everyone who gets inside it. It makes sense because this is a game made to be played with incredibly crappy dual analog control scheme on consoles.
Also, *facepalm* at the Titanfall beta. I signed up for the PC beta, and I've now received TWO Xbox One beta keysYou should sell those, make some money.
Well the first weapon in the game is a smart gun, which has a reticule taking half of a screen and it auto-aims to everyone who gets inside it. It makes sense because this is a game made to be played with incredibly crappy dual analog control scheme on consoles.
On a side note, the game really isn't that fun.Granted i didn't actually played it myself and don't see myself ever paying EA for it but i really liked what i saw from Giant Bomb's footage.
Are they not called mechs in game?Thats the joke.
This is a really great movie I'm supposed to be playing...My main problem with this trend is that the people who do this kind of games and and people who consume and like it seemingly lost ability get emotion and satisfaction out of the gameplay itself as a process.
The gameplay so far is pretty shallow: walk, hide, press the square button a bunch of times. The Last of Us does a lot in terms of advancing the cinematic element in games, but I also think that's exactly what's wrong with the industry these days. Games are far more focused on telling a story than being fun, instead of telling a story AND being fun or even just being fun. Maybe I'm just an old man at 29 and I just don't get modern video games. I cherish the gameplay parts more than anything else. I'm have some difficulty staying engaged when I feel like I'm barely doing anything interactive...
This is a really great movie I'm supposed to be playing...My main problem with this trend is that the people who do this kind of games and and people who consume and like it seemingly lost ability get emotion and satisfaction out of the gameplay itself as a process.
The gameplay so far is pretty shallow: walk, hide, press the square button a bunch of times. The Last of Us does a lot in terms of advancing the cinematic element in games, but I also think that's exactly what's wrong with the industry these days. Games are far more focused on telling a story than being fun, instead of telling a story AND being fun or even just being fun. Maybe I'm just an old man at 29 and I just don't get modern video games. I cherish the gameplay parts more than anything else. I'm have some difficulty staying engaged when I feel like I'm barely doing anything interactive...
Gameplay for them is something you have to suffer through, a token lip service you OUGHT to have, means to the end to tell their pretentious story. It would be justifiable somewhat if at least their stories were any good, but nope, these stories would have got them F at most at middle school literary classes.
Developers don't know anymore how to make player feel empowered, except that to show him a pretty CGI movie when your avatara does something awesome and player is fed awesomeness through this surrogate.
Videogame is a dance, a waltz between player and a game/developer where one partner completely dominating the other just makes for a sour experience.
Read a book, people, learn what actual good writing is. I think this whole topic was best summed up by a game developer giving an interview once who said something along the lines of "Games and narrative don't go together like peanut butter and chocolate. They go together like peanut butter and tuna fish."I don't agree with this at all. Just because a book is printed and published doesn't mean it's good. The Da Vinci Code is well researched, but I wouldn't call it good writing. In fact, at that point, Dan Brown wrote two books with the same structure, including The Da Vinci Code's prequel, Angels and Demons (the other was Deception Point or something). I didn't even bother reading Brown's two follow-ups.
Read a book, people, learn what actual good writing is. I think this whole topic was best summed up by a game developer giving an interview once who said something along the lines of "Games and narrative don't go together like peanut butter and chocolate. They go together like peanut butter and tuna fish."I don't agree with this at all. Just because a book is printed and published doesn't mean it's good. The Da Vinci Code is well researched, but I wouldn't call it good writing. In fact, at that point, Dan Brown wrote two books with the same structure, including The Da Vinci Code's prequel, Angels and Demons (the other was Deception Point or something). I didn't even bother reading Brown's two follow-ups.
More apt to this discussion, I think you can have narrative in video games, but developers have to be smart about it. Super Metroid's story is pretty minimal and the development team made a lot of smart choices. The trick is to use gameplay as an impulse. Samus gets the strongest weapon in the game after the baby Metroid sacrifices itself. Who doesn't want to murder the **** out of Mother Brain at that point? Instead of watching the encounter, the developers hand the reigns over to the player. That's the difference between that scene in Super Metroid and that same scene all stylized in Other M. And brevity isn't necessarily the key to a successful game narrative. Rather, involving the player and making them feel that their actions matter is.
And no, quick time events do not count because they're very shallow attempts at player input. There's a scene at the beginning of The Last of Us where Joel kicks through a windshield except you have to press a button a few times. That's insulting to me as a player because Naughty Dog took that much longer for me to get to actual gameplay. Developers get so wrapped up in making movies that they seem to forget why they even have a job.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Started-up The Last of Us on Friday. Without trying to spoil anything, that damn prologue hit me much harder than it would have if I weren't a parent. I don't find the gameplay particularly amazing, but I'm pulled into seeing what happens to these characters.
Finished Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, nearly 2 years after buying it. The story completely blew my mind. Will be getting the sequel once I drain some of my gaming backlog.
Finished Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, nearly 2 years after buying it. The story completely blew my mind. Will be getting the sequel once I drain some of my gaming backlog.
Started-up The Last of Us on Friday. Without trying to spoil anything, that damn prologue hit me much harder than it would have if I weren't a parent. I don't find the gameplay particularly amazing, but I'm pulled into seeing what happens to these characters.
Gotta disagree about what you think of the gameplay, but I look forward to see what you think about the story. Some advice: slow down. Walk through all non-combat moments in the game. It allows you to relax and explore the area better, and you might even set off new interactions between Joel, Ellie, and the various characters you meet on your journey. Even after a fight, I tend to look over the battlefield for secrets, supplies, and character moments that I might miss.
Oh, and turn off Listen Mode. It makes it a far better and more balanced game.
In anticipation of Dark Souls 2, I just started up a run of Dark Souls. Been a while since I played last, and it took a while to get used to the controls and interface again. I really hope they do a good job of communicating some of that vital information in the sequel, as I think it should be possible to do so without dumbing down the game. I think some of the game's "intentional" obscurity falls into the trendy "hipster"mindset of being a part of some secret society that few others "get". I'll have a bit over a month before the sequel's release, though, since I'm holding out for the PC version. Hopefully, they've learned their lesson and the PC "port" isn't complete ass. one bug is hurting the game's chances in my books.
...Really, I liked the controls in the first one. To the point that I take out large creatures I was suppose to use my Tank on with my on foot weapons for extra XP. I didn't play them all on PC and I do hate Dual Analog gun controls so I'm not that great of a measuring stick.
Mass Effect 1 (PC):
Even after i stopped bothering trying to make gamepad controls work on PC, i still can't play it.
I get to first fight in the super long corridor and i just give up. Here:
(http://i.minus.com/i2jYydUZctV03.jpg)
Nothing feels right at all. I tried to get through it like five times and lose any drive to play any longer within a minute.
...
Cave Story 3D
Instead of playing through my backlog, I borrowed another game from my friend. Anyway, the game hasn't hooked me yet. I don't get the hype, but I'm willing to give it a chance.
I was about to finally play Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles - The Crystal Bearers, but the batteries in my Wii Remotes are dead and I currently don't have any extras at home.AAA batteries in game controller are such a hassle to deal with. Replacing them, keeping track of them, recharging them. My rechargeable batteries i got 1-2 years ago are now going dead, so now i'm have to buy eneloops, because they apparently last longer.
Seriously. **** you, 5-K Blast & Bounce.I finally completed this level again with all puzzle pieces; this time in Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D. Never playing that stage again.
If you had a gaming computer I might suggest the Anno Series to you Azeke. From what you said above it may be your cup of tea.I have a great gaming PC which i play lots of games on, but i completely lost the wish to play on kb/m setup unless i'm at work where i am contractually obligated to sit staring at the monitor for hours.
I've been playing Final Fantasy X HD on my Vita...a LOT of Final Fantasy X HD, actually. How much? Here's a hint: I've fully powered-up all 7 Celestial Weapons (as well as captured 10 of every monster in the game for the Monster Arena). I've never done that before, nor will I ever do it again. If you're at all familiar with Final Fantasy X's post-game content, you know how ridiculous that gets.
Zack and Wiki is one of the games of the Wii in my book, y'all must not have played much in the way of old-school PC adventure games.
Batman Arkham Origins (Wii U):
One particular story segment (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPltgOzumNE) made me very happy, it pulled from many comics stories at the same time and interweaves them all in a very smart way.
Combat system is getting troublesome enough to a point where i just want to avoid battles entirely. Main gripe is when you try to do ground takedown someone will always try to hit you and even if you press counter button you won't block because takedown animation is still going
Bosses are usual western developer style bosses -- as in brain dead awful. Just keep railing on them until they die, no imagination used whatsoever. I can only guess that weird people who liked Mr. Freeze boss in City have never played Platinum game (or just any japanese game in general) in their life.
I was stuck on Deadshot "boss" encounter which takes a lot of time and was very annoying because it was heavily based on "stealth" -- i.e. mindless repetition of the same actions and lots and lots of waiting.
Super Mario World (GBA):
Love cartoony look, lots of very cool animations. Music is also great.
Weird that i played through three worlds and don't remember going into a single pipe. Don't understand the purpose of spin jump, aside from destroying blocks under me, isn't it otherwise the same as short hop?
However, maybe this is spoiler-y for you and you weren't actually looking for this info right now when posting those thoughts. In which case, sorry.No, i'm not crazy enough to scream "life destroying spoilerz!" when someone shares useful Mario information with me.
Yeah that spin jump doesn't sound like super useful. I do use it sometimes for short long jumps though.However, maybe this is spoiler-y for you and you weren't actually looking for this info right now when posting those thoughts. In which case, sorry.No, i'm not crazy enough to scream "life destroying spoilerz!" when someone shares useful Mario information with me.
It's like modern silent movies. Mel Brooks did a silent movie comedy in 1976 called Silent Movie and then there was The Artist in 2012 as another example. In both cases, those movies are much better than the actual silent movies made in the early 20th century. And that's because there has been so much learnt in film technique, acting, direction, cinematography, effects, you name it. So, when these modern design techniques are applied to a silent movie, the result is that they are more engaging than the earlier films they are doing an homage to.
... I don't like the jumping physics, bring back the crispness of SMB1 jumping.
VII is one of the most overrated games of all time. Second and third only to Ocarina of Time and Goldeneye 007.
VII is one of the most overrated games of all time. Second and third only to Ocarina of Time and Goldeneye 007.
VII is one of the most overrated games of all time. Second and third only to Ocarina of Time and Goldeneye 007.
This is the part where I make a crack about your age and then you get all angry and defensive.
You had to play Final Fantasy VII back in that generation to appreciate it. I didn't play it until 2000 which was pushing it. I played Final Fantasy IX first which made a few important changes (like not forcing you to watch summons every time). And I didn't care until the end of disc one when Sephiroth kills Aeris. If I was trying to play it today, I'd never get anywhere.Disagree. I played it around 2011 when I finally found a copy cheap enough. It is a magnificent game. Better then most of the other titles. But I'll agree that disc 1 is boring. I hate the entire beginning of the game, particularly everything about Aerith and Midgar.
I said something similar recently and was nearly crucified for it. The NSMB jumping physics don't feel good to me at all - they feel mushy and a bit floaty - but apparently many people love them. Guess it depends on what you are used to.Much as I like the NSMB games (for the levels and multiplayer), I agree that they don't control too well. I miss the sharp control of Super Mario World, and I have no idea why that didn't become the standard of control for not just Mario, but all platformers to follow.
Can anyone give some encouragement? Will this game improve dramatically if I keep playing, or should I cut my losses and move on?Myself, I felt the first 8 or so hours were the best part of the game. After you leave Midgar is when I felt things started going downhill. On the opposite end, some people feel the game gets better as you go, so who knows, maybe you'd be one of them.
New Super Mario Bros U I got the game free for buying MK8. I seems a little ho-hum so far. I don't like the jumping physics, bring back the crispness of SMB1 jumping.I find the NSMB series the closest to SMB1. I find myself overshooting and having to adjust my position constantly in all other 2d Mario games. In SMB1 and NSMB i jump and land exactly where i wanted to.
Super Mario Deluxe (3DS):I missed this one, this game sounds awesome. 3DS eShop, I assume?
Ridiculously small screen is a big problem, so you have to be very cautious or just memorize all the levels.
Got to 5-1 on one life, i guess i am now trying to to beat it on one continue then. I might even try to do the same with Lost Levels when i will unlock it (yeah no, fat chance of that without grinding 1ups).
Extra modes in this game are as much if not more fun than actual game:
- collectathon levels where they hide special coins and yoshi egg all over standard SMB levels and you need to find them AND hit the score.
- boo races with all new levels[/l][/l][/l][/l]
Fez (PS4). I just downloaded and started this game probably less than an hour ago. It's pretty cool - kind of annoying, but I hope I finish it. I also hope it doesn't take that long to finish.Main campaign took me about 15+ hours.
I was surprised there were no updates, mandatory or otherwise. I have no idea if that's because THQ is no more and the updates were yanked or if there never were any to begin with. I'll look it up, but I'm already typing this.
Ogre Battle 64. Been trying to grind some of my weaker dudes so that I'm not so overall underleveled.
But what's this? A TBS game with a story that (mostly) isn't country A has invaded country B? Say it isn't so. What madness.
I do love how they first introduce the ogres by basically having a rebel soldier find a dead imperial soldier and starts wondering how he died given that the rebels had just arrived and then another imperial screams for help
I finally opened Darksiders 2. Meh...
I was surprised there were no updates, mandatory or otherwise. I have no idea if that's because THQ is no more and the updates were yanked or if there never were any to begin with. I'll look it up, but I'm already typing this.
I'm going to give it more time. So far, it's pretty boring. I don't really care for Death. I liked War in the original more, and I would have preferred Fury over another overly-muscular dude. Then again, I have a feeling Fury would have just been scantily clad and heavy-chested and frankly, these kinds of character design cliches are tiresome. The voice acting and narration are way too over-dramatic. I feel like Vigil Games thought their story was grander than it actually is. And they cheat right in the beginning. After the first boss, Death is whisked away to a world than isn't Heaven, Hell, or Earth. What the fuc...
Still, I paid $10 for this game. I'm nitpicking so far. Ultimately, even if I don't finish it, I won't regret picking it up.
Good Heavens, AC IV is like Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Is this the best game of the series?Best would be ACII or Brotherhood.
Maybe I should pick up ACII. The parkour is getting on my nerves. That and the collectathon that makes Star Fox Adventures look streamlined.This is actually why i enjoy AC series to begin with. So if you don't like these elements, i don't think you'll like any of them.
Dark Souls (PC):
Messing around. I was trying to kill that Black Knight on top a tower, but kept failing, so i changed approach and picked Thief's light armour.
Additional perk of Thief armour is that now you can get to enemies almost point blank without them hearing you. So this time i sneaked up to Black Knight, executed backstab with an axe and ran away. He chased me for a while on a winding stairs (the camera is so awful in there, very hard to see if BK is coming down), but then stopped and resumed his post on the tower.
I sneaked up to him again and did another backstab. After that he chased all the way down and i did the finishing blow as he was exiting the tower.
Then messed around with dragon on a bridge. You can goad to land on a bridge and then, when he is on the other side of a bridge you can make a run for it and reach the other side (saw it in a let's play, no way i could figure it out).
Area you unlock there is kinda useless because there is nothing in there. Some loot like Claymore -- too bad i can't wield it. Also it unlocks a new shortcut between areas but it's not too important.
I have had Endless Space for a long time, but the big problem with the game is combat. Nice to look at, but the fundamentals are so simple that you end up pretty much doing one thing. Get bigger ships, lasers and stick a combat hero on it, then go to town. Except that fleet strength isn't invasion strength so now you have to get another dumbass fleet to finish things off and it can take ages. Then there's the AI fleets you can't catch because they keep moving.
Everything else about it is good, but damn the combat.
Getting the NES versions of Contra and Super C on my 3DS is tremendous added value.Do they have download play like the main game?
Getting the NES versions of Contra and Super C on my 3DS is tremendous added value.Do they have download play like the main game?
... and Contra 4 (DS) .
Contra 4 is suprisingly easier than Contra 3. You have more options in 4 and some weapons almost break the game. You also don't have to deal with the not so enjoyable mode 7 levels which can be hell on the eyes especially with the spinning boss from hell. Overall Contra 4 is just a fairer game.
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (DS):Git gud n00b, it's horrible gamers like you that ruined future Fire Emblem games with
One of the traps that always gets one of my characters killed is when i move my characters right to the border or enemies' reach but then when i move other units that were inside it, reach gets much bigger because enemies now don't have to bypass them. This leaves my character that was previously on the border open for the kill and i can't even move him/her away because i already used his turn.
I kept making this stupid error and got my characters killed again and again last night. Still stuck on chapter 16 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtGLct7ASTQ) because of that. It isn't even that hard -- i killed most the army there but i also want to recruit guys from the villages on the up left and that means i have to drag Marth there and because of constant reinforcements he can't go alone and needs an entourage to protect him.
Cycle of repeating the same actions, doing stupid mistake or getting a crit and resetting because you lost a character is tiresome.
I'd have more sympathy about the Fire Emblem stuff except he knows it's his own fault for repeating dumb mistakes. Get good, indeed.Hear that Azeke? It's all your fault that the knight on the top right corner of the map managed to get a crit despite the fact that had he not gotten a crit he wouldn't have been anywhere near being able to kill you.
Next up is Nightshade (NES). Fond memories of playing this way back in the day will be put to the test. At one point I could take down 3 out of 4 crime lords and really start to put the squeeze on Sutekh.(http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130820212053/tardis/images/4/45/Sutekh.jpg)
I'd have more sympathy about the Fire Emblem stuff except he knows it's his own fault for repeating dumb mistakes. Get good, indeed.Hear that Azeke? It's all your fault that the knight on the top right corner of the map managed to get a crit despite the fact that had he not gotten a crit he wouldn't have been anywhere near being able to kill you.
git gud
...
(http://thecontrolleronline.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Vanquish_1.jpg)Those Pictures make me want to play this game now.
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp236/Linkyshinks/Vanquish%20PG/2132409368_full.jpg)
(http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/sqllius/Untitled-1.gif)
I also been getting real far in Super Mario 3D World I am up to the lava land map I think it is the last map I am not sure.You're not even close to the end.
I've finished Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor. While I like the game, it's not the gift from God everyone has made it out to be after Destiny turned out to be a colossal piece of ****. The much-vaunted Nemesis System only really comes into play if you're really terrible at video games, so it pretty much vanishes after the first 1/4 of the game when you gain a decent number of skills and perks. It completely vanishes in the game's second half when you have the ability to Brand Orcs and have them do your bidding, since the game basically becomes just running up to every Orc Captain; blasting it down to 1/4 health; Branding it; and then walking away. My main issue with this game is that this is an open world game with large-scale mob combat and...absolutely nothing else. There is no gameplay variety whatsoever, so the game really feels like it's dragging before you even get out of the first of the two areas.So your saying that its Hyrule Warriors without the over the topness and brevity?
And **** that sequel-baiting ending. Calling it "half-assed" and "thrown together at the last minute" would be being extremely kind to it.
I've finished Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor. While I like the game, it's not the gift from God everyone has made it out to be after Destiny turned out to be a colossal piece of ****. The much-vaunted Nemesis System only really comes into play if you're really terrible at video games, so it pretty much vanishes after the first 1/4 of the game when you gain a decent number of skills and perks. It completely vanishes in the game's second half when you have the ability to Brand Orcs and have them do your bidding, since the game basically becomes just running up to every Orc Captain; blasting it down to 1/4 health; Branding it; and then walking away. My main issue with this game is that this is an open world game with large-scale mob combat and...absolutely nothing else. There is no gameplay variety whatsoever, so the game really feels like it's dragging before you even get out of the first of the two areas.So your saying that its Hyrule Warriors without the over the topness and brevity?
And **** that sequel-baiting ending. Calling it "half-assed" and "thrown together at the last minute" would be being extremely kind to it.
I've been playing Metroid Fusion on the Wii U Virtual Console and I've gotta say the more I play this the more I think it's a better game than Super Metroid. People complain about its linearity but Super isn't really any less linear unless you're going out of your way to sequence break, and the control setup, despite having two fewer buttons to work with, is so, so much better. Can't wait until Zero Mission hits the service as I've never had the chance to play that one and it sounds like it's even better.Having played through Fusion before finally beating Super Metroid, I'm with you on this.
Why does a new game need to advance the series? Why not just make another new game?
When there's gaps that long between installments, I'm not sure how anyone can get sick of the gameplay unless they're playing the previous installment over 9000 times during said gap in which case it's there fault, not the developers.That's pretty terrible reasoning. The length of time between releases shouldn't stop developers from innovating. There was a five year gap between the original and Metroid II. They made some significant improvements and it is a much better game. Three years after that, Super Metroid is even better. If you can improve things, even if it's already great, why wouldn't you do that?
I didn't mind the linearity. Despite an eight year gap, Fusion advanced the series very little beyond ledge grabbing and a few tense moments where Samus runs away from the SA-X. That doesn't make it a bad game and I really like Fusion. However, it's primarily why I hold Super Metroid in a much higher regard.
People complain about its linearity but Super isn't really any less linear unless you're going out of your way to sequence break,It's more about how Fusion usually blocks off areas, preventing the player from exploring to look for hidden items and returning to areas with new abilities and such. There's less freedom in Fusion in that sense. I also didn't feel like the world design was as good as Super either. The controls in Fusion are certainly sharp and smooth though, no argument there. I still think it's a good game but it doesn't have the right balance of action and exploration/freedom for me.
Donkey Kong Country 2 (GBA):I think some of the issues you talk about are made worse in the GBA version, where the viewable area is smaller than on SNES.
Finished with 59%:
Playing Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (DS) and finding it... "ok". Doesn't live up to the cult hype, and feels rough compared to the sublime writing in Ghost Trick (DS), which I thought was supposed to be similar. Despite the let down it's still a good story and has plenty of time to go off the rails (in a good way) as I get deeper into the game - only mid-way through the third chapter right now.It takes some time to establish characters and arcs. Once the game accumulates enough characters and long standing mysteries, it starts to interweave them in wonderful ways.
I went back and played a decent chunk of Super Mario 3D World tonight. As time passes, I'm becoming more and more comfortable saying that's my favorite game of all time. Perfectly distilled platforming.
And if you'd like to come Smash my head into the stratosphere with me as any of my three 'Bests,' then by all means, please come do it. I welcome all challengers. (I'm terrible, really.)I'm down. Maybe I can change your mind regarding Lady Fire Emblem (AKA Lucina). I'm not great either. In Classic Mode, I've only been able to max at 7.0 difficulty. I've seen video of someone beating 9.0 without damage.
Pandora's Tower (Wii):
...
That is, until I encountered a game-breaking bug in the final two dungeons that hard-freezes the Wii U (and Wii, based on forums). ... Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.
...
Play Excite Bot. They sat down in the room and asked what could make this crazier. Then did it.
Uh-oh! Looks like I've decided today is a good day to venture deeper into the bowels of the NWR forums! I believe this is a good place to start as any, as the subject is broad and the points don't matter! I'll catch you folks up on the last... I'unno, 5 things I've been playing, because otherwise it'd be clogged with Super Smash Bros. For 3DS and Shantae...!
1. Starbound
I decided recently it was time to start a 4th character and play the game vanilla since they are talking about updating it to 1.0 very soon. That being said... I'm not noticing anything different in the progression or recopies available to this new character. Have I missed a patch somewhere? it still says the version is Enraged Koala. the only thing I've noticed that's new is that some weapons now aim where you have your mouse cursor pointed ala' Terraria.
For the uninitiated, that's really what this game is. It's a Sci-fi spiritual sequel to Terraria where you choose from one of six alien races and end up orbiting a random planet with no food, no fuel, and little more than a flash light, a matter manipulator, and a rusty sword to defend yourself, and... while there are bosses and progression as you craft and find better swag, it really doesn't have a ton of structure. Sand box funtimes, pretty much. makes for an excellent podcast game still, even if I don't find myself enamored with the game like I did my first time through.
2. Batman (NES, Sunsoft)
I was at my local flea market a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a copy of this for $5 and immediately demanded to take it home...! I used to rent this all the time from Dollar Video back when I was like... 7? 8? holy wow.
Sunsoft is a really hit or miss developer, and Batman, while being brutal beyond words, is up in that upper tier of the third party's achievements along with the likes of Blaster Master and Journey to Silius. the game has a lot of parallels to Ninja Gaiden with being an action platformer that sports an emphasis on Wall Jumps, managing sub weapons and ammo for them, and very evil enemy placement. Also, it has a bitchin' soundtrack. Pretty much, before Rocksteady got into the batman game business, this was THE game to play starring the Dark Knight.
3. Kirby Super Star
Speaking of games I used to rent all the damned time at Dollar Video on nights my parents felt like getting a large Deep-Dish pizza and renting an action movie that has possibly more cheese in it than the Chicago-style pie, I used to rent Kirby Super Star all the time! While I didn't stumble upon it at a flea market on the cheap, I did happen to have enough coins after Super Smash Bros. and Azure Striker Gunvolt to get this pillar of fine gaming from Club Nintendo!
Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!
A. The physics for the platforming controls in a Kirby game are surprisingly similar to those in the Smash Bros. games. of course, this isn't a surprise consideirng the release of Kirby Super Star and the development of Dragon King for the SNES Super FX chip lined up quite well. of course, Dragon King would get moved to the N64, and eventually Sakurai would get the green light to let pre-established Nintendo characters become the fighters instead of the generic polygon fighters.
B. Blocking was introduced in Kirby Super Star by using the L and R buttons. When Kirby has the Mirror ability copied, this becomes a bubble shield that takes no chip damage.
C. The various characters that appear at ringside of the Mt. Dedede arena and the Megaton Punch arena, as well as the goodies found in the Great Cave Offensive show an interest to at least in some comical fashion to tie Nintendo universes together. This is actually furthered in KDL3 where Kirby Meets up with the characters from Shin Onigashima, Professor Hector, and Samus.
D. Copy abilities gained multiple attacks that all depended on a directional imput+ hitting the attack button. this would of course become the basis for the fighting system in Smash Bros games after a bit of further fleshing out.
E. The obvious inspiration that The Arena and the Music from the rest areas in Great Cave Offensive had on Melee's All-Star mode.
F. Kirby Super Star is the first example of a UI feeling like a Sakurai Menu. granted, he wouldn't get his flair for the truly abstract until Melee and Kirby's Air Ride, but the Corkboard menu separating Kirby's various adventures and the unlockable options and mini-games into buttons feels VERY much like something you'd see in Brawl or Smash 4.
G. Kirby's Super Star featured the germination of Kirby's various attacks having specific damage values and enemies in a kirby game having an HP bar that could be mapped by using attacks on the computer virus boss. This is a bit of a stretch, but I feel the idea of attacks in Smash Bros. games doing % damage could easily have come from this.
H. The eb and Flow of Master+Crazy Hand, Subspace bosses, and Master Core all REALLY feel like Kirby Bosses, particularly with Wham Bam Rock and Master Hand having so many similarities, Tabuu taking straight from the Kirby rulebook of teleporting around like a nut before doing sort of attack that finally gives him a vulnerable moment, or some of Galleom's attacks feeling very similar to the Heavy Lobster.
4. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
Still playing tons of Smash Run, still playing lots of intensity 9 Classic to get good equipment and such. I do like that from what I've peeked at SmashBoards, they are very seriously considering having a custom move Meta, and Nintendo's recent tournament really supports it as well. I feel Custom moves, Equipment, and Amiibo are probably going to be some of the finer points of the Smash 4 body as a whole, but people will continue to snob on these excelent additions because they dislike change or having to adapt to more content.
5. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse
Shantae is my #2 favorite game of all time. it is a flawed but beautiful little gem that OOZES personality and charm. It has a fun little narrative and it's very meta and self-aware. Also, it's the game that Castlevania 2 should have been.
Pirate's Curse feels so much more focused...! I'm glad Wayforward took the extra Dev time on this one, because it feels like a MUCH better version of Risky's Revenge. getting around is easy, the combat somehow feels even snapper, the game already has a better difficulty to it, and the pirate abilities feel so darned natural.
I also learn that we're FINALLY learning more about some of the supporting cast of these games. I feel like I know more about Sky, Uncle Mimic, Rottytops, Mayor Scuttlebutt, and most importantly Risky then I ever did before...! Things feel so much more fleshed out, and it's great...!
So is the soundtrack. and the 3D effect. and the return to a ore balanced version of shantae 1's item system. and so much more. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is easily the best of the trilogy thus far, and may just end up dethroning the original GB title from my list.
2. Batman (NES, Sunsoft)
I was at my local flea market a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a copy of this for $5 and immediately demanded to take it home...! I used to rent this all the time from Dollar Video back when I was like... 7? 8? holy wow.
Sunsoft is a really hit or miss developer, and Batman, while being brutal beyond words, is up in that upper tier of the third party's achievements along with the likes of Blaster Master and Journey to Silius. the game has a lot of parallels to Ninja Gaiden with being an action platformer that sports an emphasis on Wall Jumps, managing sub weapons and ammo for them, and very evil enemy placement. Also, it has a bitchin' soundtrack. Pretty much, before Rocksteady got into the batman game business, this was THE game to play starring the Dark Knight.
3. Kirby Super Star
Speaking of games I used to rent all the damned time at Dollar Video on nights my parents felt like getting a large Deep-Dish pizza and renting an action movie that has possibly more cheese in it than the Chicago-style pie, I used to rent Kirby Super Star all the time! While I didn't stumble upon it at a flea market on the cheap, I did happen to have enough coins after Super Smash Bros. and Azure Striker Gunvolt to get this pillar of fine gaming from Club Nintendo!
Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!
Pandora's Tower (Wii):
You have to beat the final twin dungeons in at most three runs, or you're fucking stuck. Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.
3. Kirby Super Star
Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!
My favorite Kirby is Return to Dreamland since it takes the gameplay Super Star started and puts in a bigger Kirby game that also has a great challenge as well. The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland alone are more fun to me then anything else Kirby related since they finally give players are real reason to get good at using Kirby's abilities.
I've always liked Kirby games, but the biggest problem is they're just way too easy. Even Super Star which is great and all, is still extremely easy (except for the True Arena in Super Star Ultra). The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland finally gave something for a more skilled gamer like me to really enjoy after playing the main game. Of course even with the main game, I loved that Return to Dreamland also included a EX mode after you beat the game that made all the bosses much harder with entirely new attacks as well. This made the True Arena in that game a blast to play as well.
I still haven't played Triple Deluxe for the 3DS but I've heard it does similar things so it could replace Return to Dreamland after I eventually play it. For now though, Return to Dreamland is still king.
I guess I should point out my main issue is I don't buy hand held machines anymore and even when I did I wasn't that big into portable gaming so I miss out on the vast majority of the "good" Kirby games as a result from what I hear. My experience is limited mostly to the console games. I am considering getting a 3DS Xl at some point though so that might change in the near future.
I am curious if other people who rate Super Star so highly are like me, it was their first Kirby game and the one that set the standard?I actually had a thought about this, but my previous post was already way too lengthy. I think that definitely could be a factor for some people, because the first game someone plays in a series is going to be introducing the most new stuff, making it the most novel experience. Take me for example, my fave Pokémon game is still Gold which is also the first one I played, and I think the reason it was the most enjoyable to me is because it was the freshest. Mind, I don't think there's anything wrong with this, just that it's something worth acknowledging.
Pandora's Tower (Wii):
You have to beat the final twin dungeons in at most three runs, or you're fucking stuck. Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.
That's not true though. If you keep reseting your system it'll eventually let you through. The more runs you do the less likely the workaround will work, but if you keep reseting, eventually there will be a time the glitch doesn't happen and you can finish those towers even after 3 runs. It took me more then 3 runs to beat it and I ended up resetting I'm sure a dozen times but it's still possible to get through the towers.
Of course be sure to get all the dungeon exclusive items before you beat the final boss in the 13th Tower since on New Game + the glitch will work 100% of the time, making it impossible to revisit the 11th/12th towers again. Luckily on New Game + you can go to the 13th Tower whenever you want so the game won't lock you out of being able to get all the different endings, but the 11/12th tower will be.
I dunno, dude, I must have tried at least twenty times going through all of the methods I've found posted. From what I pieced together on various forums, it seems that Elena will only go through so many generic "bonding" cutscenes between each master flesh feeding, and after I ran those out (and making flesh rot when going to 11/12 stopped working), it was hard locks all the way.
SO many people are crazy about Kirby 64, but I'm kinda... Lukewarm on it.Yeah, it is odd how slow Kirby moves in that game, not sure what they were thinking on that one. I do find it interesting how you find that many people love the game, because my experience is the exact opposite; most people don't like Kirby 64 very much that I've seen, and they say the same thing you said, that Kirby is slow. I think they said other things too but I don't remember.
Float Muffins sound delicious.
Because i've seen lots of videos of this game i know you can destroy checkpoints for more points, but couldn't do it in there (maybe you need to beat the level once to be able to do this?).
I complained on Twitter yesterday that Mario games could be too slow at times. EAD Tokyo apparently saw that, went back in time, and made Bowser World Level 3 in Super Mario 3D World. You basically have to run full speed the whole way, with tons of boost pads and tight corners. I died dozens of times before making it through, and I absolutely loved it.
Continuing my run of going back to games I absolutely adored but drifted away from for some reason, I got back into Pikmin 3. This really is a perfect synthesis of the ideas of the first two games. There's a time limit that pushes you forward, but it isn't as hard and fast as the original. The ability to multitask returns, but this time the game actually designs puzzles that force you to use it. And this is one of the few first party Wii U games that really benefits from the GamePad, even (especially) while using the Wii remote and nunchuk controls.
I was a massive fan of the first two games, and this game is the best one yet. I hope we get to see another one some day.
Have you ever played Klonoa: Door to Phantomile, Mop it up? Ironically, I feel that Klonoa draws a lot from Kirby, and then Kirby 64 has the same sorts of levels, but without the ability to interact with the foreground or background, which is really a shame.I missed this somehow, better late than never I guess. I didn't play this exact game, but I played the Klonoa game on the Wii which I believe is related to in some way. Some kind of remake perhaps? In any case, it did indeed have some good level design, but the gameplay itself is a bit one-note, especially compared to something like Kirby. It's been a while now though so I don't recall much specific about the game.
Re: Zen Pinball on Wii U - you aren't alone in finding the 3DS versions better. Part of this is inevitably just what people get used to first... but I also had a hard time adjusting to the Wii U version. The problems you mention all exist, but I also couldn't find a view that was really comfortable with.View 6 (or 7?) i think works very well, i usually prefer camera that moves with the ball but still gives enough view of the table itself.
That said, the portable version have their own issues. The Empire Strikes Back table from Star Wars is broken in at least one spot, and some of the other tables have wonky moments too. Doesn't seem to be any fixes on the way either.Yeah, it seems like after a while they abandoned 3DS version which is a huge shame.
Fire Emblem (GBA via WiiU):
I was hesitant on this, having never played a game in the series before, and also thinking I probably didn't have the patience to tackle a genuine strategy game at this point. But then four hours went by in a blur and I am now hooked on it in a way I haven't been with a game since, I dunno, Little King's Story? The core gameplay is streamlined just enough to keep you restarting checkpoints every time your crappiest dude/ette dies, while allowing for satisfying tactical engagements. The AI feels kind of sluggish and dopey until it smells blood and then all of the sudden a mage runs at a wall to wipe someone out you didn't realize was in range and that's 20 minutes of lesson learned. The options are surprisingly robust for a GBA game, too, text speed, game speed options, UI options. The dedicated explanation button also ensures that you're never in the dark about any stat category or item.
Some quibbles that I'm curious about whether or not they're cleaned up in later games:
-It's occasionally but very annoying when the cast swaps around and you lose personnel you've been keeping carefully leveled. I wish the cast was more stable and less redundant in certain categories (no thanks third axe guy/second crappy archer; where's my little dancing fife boy?!), but that would probably clash with permadeath.
-Attacks seem to whiff too often, even with no terrain or weapon disadvantages. Makes archers even more marginal.
-Random reinforcements from the edges of the map can screw you over if you haven't already played a scenario and know to expect them.
-Main avatars (Elliwood, Lyn) are unpleasantly weak and remain anemically leveled due to risk aversion. Not asking them to be Markuses, but they feel more like liabilities than protagonists most of the time.
-Speaking of which, Markus and a few others are ridiculously stronger and more versatile than anyone else. It's quite difficult at points not to just steamroll the enemies with your tanks and thus unbalance things even more.
Do you think it's wise/viable to just concentrate on levelling up a core group of 10-12 folks with the assumption that I won't allow any of them to die? I imagine I will have to whip out specific characters now and then for the narrative, but I should be able to just treat them like escort burdens.
Specifically: Is there a reason I should keep both Serra and Priscilla in rotation? Priscilla just seems better with the increased mobility.
Also: I realized I've been ignoring the affinity system. Is there a compelling reason to bother paying attention to this? It's definitely the least explained of the game systems and I can't tell if it affects battle outcomes, or how to build affinity or keep track of relationships.
Got bored with Watch Dogs, started Destiny last night. Also going to check out Minecraft today and see what all that hype is about.
Yes, yes it is.Got bored with Watch Dogs, started Destiny last night. Also going to check out Minecraft today and see what all that hype is about.
I like Destiny, but it's mostly because I have people to play with from time to time. Some of the best content is gated to people who have enough high level friends to play the strikes & raids with, which is really unfortunate.
Yes, yes it is.Got bored with Watch Dogs, started Destiny last night. Also going to check out Minecraft today and see what all that hype is about.
I like Destiny, but it's mostly because I have people to play with from time to time. Some of the best content is gated to people who have enough high level friends to play the strikes & raids with, which is really unfortunate.
@Clex- Would you believe me if I told you I invested well over 80 hours into that mini-game just to get everything? Because that mini game is a nightmare.
The Swapper (PC):Controller support on PC did felt tacked-on (felt like a simple XPadder profile), but it was workable.
Also can't imagine using a controller for this, I wager it could negatively impact the experience, especially with the "jumping" system.
Rhythm Heaven Fever (Wii):Check your TV settings, set it to "Gaming mode" if available. By default, modern TVs add various postprocessing filters which add lag that destroys games based on accurate timings.
Good lord, is this game hard. It took me the better part of an hour to beat the first monkey golf level...
Also i have no concrete proof, but i have a feeling that Wii mode on Wii U lags by itself. Punch-Out!! for example feels more responsive on Gamepad than on TV while i am in Wii mode.
QuoteAlso i have no concrete proof, but i have a feeling that Wii mode on Wii U lags by itself. Punch-Out!! for example feels more responsive on Gamepad than on TV while i am in Wii mode.
I know they did tests early on and the signal to the Wii U Gamepad did have less latency than to a LCD.
My friend used to have a 27" HD TV CRT, I bet it would be valuable to some nowadays, with the lowest latency being on CRT.
I probably still be using my CRT if it had an HDMI port...QuoteAlso i have no concrete proof, but i have a feeling that Wii mode on Wii U lags by itself. Punch-Out!! for example feels more responsive on Gamepad than on TV while i am in Wii mode.
I know they did tests early on and the signal to the Wii U Gamepad did have less latency than to a LCD.
My friend used to have a 27" HD TV CRT, I bet it would be valuable to some nowadays, with the lowest latency being on CRT.
Guacamelee is making me angry. I may not come back to it.Get a Coop Partner. Doesn't matter who, mine was my son who was 3-4 at the time. It helps.
I'm currently playing Heroes of the Storm, I was a sucker and bought into the beta, though the character pack and mount is about worth it. It's an enjoyable game.... I wish I had people I know to play with though.If you count forums I've been in the Beta, though I stopped a little, and we can play if you want to.
This is the Tetris I want to get. It's Japan only and physical disc only because of the Ubisoft exclusive deal. PS3, PS4 and XB1 are region free, so it's a hot import item.
I modded my SNES for Super Famicom games! :3 FF5 was a cheapie, and I've played it enough in English.An interesting idea. Even if I played it before I don't think I could enjoy playing an RPG where I can't understand a lick of it. I'll have to stick with the GBA version.
I modded my SNES for Super Famicom games! :3 FF5 was a cheapie, and I've played it enough in English.An interesting idea. Even if I played it before I don't think I could enjoy playing an RPG where I can't understand a lick of it. I'll have to stick with the GBA version.
I found the lack of an overhead view to be a major problem with the STEAM demo, as it makes trying to aim the Bear Bomb more of a colossal headache trying to fight the camera than it should be.You can change the angle of bomb toss by pressing R.
I found my characters were never getting a confirmed kill on Overwatch, where the CPU was always getting it.Overwatch is always a guaranteed stun at least, for what i seen.
though I find the opening to be emotionally manipulative and not at all indicative of the rest of the game. You can't just go from "Grave of the Fireflies" to ****ing Contra and not expect tonal whiplash.
though I find the opening to be emotionally manipulative and not at all indicative of the rest of the game. You can't just go from "Grave of the Fireflies" to ****ing Contra and not expect tonal whiplash.
Ha, yeah, I was shaking my head at that intro and then transition into what the game is actually like. It's telling that the game is getting a lot of praise for emotional nuance from the gaming press.
Any game where the text language changes in the middle of a bloody scene can't be "the best" anything.
Any game where the text language changes in the middle of a bloody scene can't be "the best" anything.
I haven't heard of this bug. Is it PC only?
Super Mario Land (Gameboy VC):? SML physics are absolutely nothing like traditional SMB1.
...It preserves the SMB physics and play-style...
Donkey Kong '94 (Gameboy VC):?? Physics are not like SMB at all, but they're not bad at all. As one can guess from name alone it comes from Donkey Kong and has DK arcade specific things like fall damage, that was abolished in Super Mario series. But they're massively expanded upon, like you can roll out of a long fall.
...but the stiff movement and jumping doesn't translate super well to this kind of experience...
? SML physics are absolutely nothing like traditional SMB1.
?? Physics are not like SMB at all, but they're not bad at all. As one can guess from name alone it comes from Donkey Kong and has DK arcade specific things like fall damage, that was abolished in Super Mario series. But they're massively expanded upon, like you can roll out of a long fall.
DK' 94 rivals SM' 64 in terms of how many moves Mario has. It's not just handstand. It's back flip (somersault), triple jump, jumping INTO handstand, jumping OUT of a handstand, rolling and many other moves.
And they're all available to you from the get go -- it's not like you're unlocking them as you go. Every four levels you're shown a new move or a new gimmick. DK' 94 manages to keep it up for the entire duration of relatively long game. That's the level of creativity Galaxy games have where they invent a cool gimmick to play with for one-two levels and then drop it.
From Software said they are addressing the load times and will fix that.Maybe don't release the game when is has such unacceptable load times?
From Software said they are addressing the load times and will fix that.Maybe don't release the game when is has such unacceptable load times?
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate (3DS) - What a weird little game.I liked the demo.
I'm enjoying my time well enough to keep playing, despite some unfortunate design decisions - sudden death falls, pointless (but mandatory) quick-time events, unlimited lives during boss fights, etc. The combo system for combat is interesting enough, and the overall castle design is decent so far... yet I still feel let down by the whole experience so far and keep wishing they used nice sprite work instead of the somewhat ugly 3D models (even though it doesn't really matter much since the game design is all 2D level layouts so far).
Maybe a victim of high expectations? Regardless, I'd still say the actual game is leaps and bounds better than the demo that was released - and am glad to have picked it up on sale a while back. Looking forward to getting further into the game.
Stealth Inc. I know the sequel got a ton of rave reviews, and have meaning to get around to this one which I've had for a while, and I'm really glad I did. Pretty excellent little puzzle platformer.I wouldn't say rave reviews. Stealth Inc 2 is alright, better than first game for sure.
I finally got around to starting Mass Effect. This game was the main reason I bought an Xbox 360 back in 2008, and then I never got around to it until now, and I'm actually playing it on PS3. I'm going with a female Shepard, with the Renegade path. So far I'm liking it a lot. I wish more games would use the sci-fi setting, I'm so sick of every RPG being swords and magic fantasy. The story's well-crafted, well-acted and compelling, and the shooting action is pretty solid. Really excited to get more into this.
Right now I'm playing the Final Fantasy X Remaster on the PS3. I never played it on the PS2 and I feel like I would have enjoyed it much more had I played it when it was current. Many of its noteworthy features like full 3D and voice acting are all very routine now so now this is a very linear RPG with an annoying main character and some melodramatic story involving daddy issues. It's the sort of teen-focused nonsense that would have probably gone over well with me in high school but seems really dumb now. Oh and I'm playing this shortly after going through Mass Effect which has a much MUCH better story. Story isn't everything, except in FFX it kind of is. The game so far hasn't given me much time to explore at my own pace and get into the battle system like Bravely Default did. Instead I'm quickly whisked from place to place where the battles seem more like padding before continuing on to the next cut scene. Again that's an RPG approach I liked when I was a teen but today I tend to prefer RPGs that focus more on the strategy of battles and classes and such. Had I played this game back in 2001 when I was barely 20 I would have thought it was awesome.
I've heard Halo: Reach is one of the better titles in the series, Broodwars. If you feel so inclined, you should check it out.
I find it hilarious that your statements on the Halo games goes against what the entire fan base believes.
They are all Halo 3 obsessed. I believe the first two were the best in the series. Halo 3 is really bland and bad. Truthfully, everything past Halo 3 is actually bad because I personally think the series is dead.I find it hilarious that your statements on the Halo games goes against what the entire fan base believes.
Regrettably, recent visits to the Master Chief Collection's GameFAQs board have made it clear that the Halo fanbase is perpetually 8 years old and despises change of any kind. I nearly did a spit take when I saw one of them claim that Halo 3 looks better than Halo 4. -_-'
Halo is highly regarded mostly because of it stable multiplayer scene, I think. I has a lot of options and has always been reliable, so consumers feel they can trust it.Maybe its just nostalgia, but the campaign with someone on the couch with you is really fun. I never played the multiplayer until like 2011. Level design and story are more or less ****, but it was still fun.Then again, I'm not the average Halo fan either since I think Halo 3 is crap.
I've never heard a single person praise the single player campaign, so that's my assumption.
Payday 2 (PC): I think I'm in love. Game is buggy more often then not, but the concept and execution of heists is done so much better then GTA V's. Beautiful game but need to be tweaked a lot.Wait till you get a 30MB update then call it rape. Love the game, but the updates...
Don't like how it has raped my HDD though with the amount of space it is taking up.
They also used Professor Pyg in the Beware the Batman animated series, although (because it's a kids show) he's substantially toned down from his comics incarnation to be an animal rights nut.
Taking a break from meatier games before delving into The Last of Us: Remastered, I've been burning a lot of time into Rocket League on PS4. Very surprised it was announced as free for PS+ on release, as I was mulling over buying it outright.
The game is like an over-the-top car version of soccer. The games range from 1v1 to 4v4, but the online games & league mode are the most fun to me in at least a 3v3 mode. You play on a field surrounded by a cage which you can drive up and across. There is a boost gauge you fill by running over yellow markers on the ground, whcih are good to catch up to a runaway ball, or if you're aggressive, you can boost fast enough to destroy opponents' cars if you ram into them. You also have a double-jump that works pretty well for both blocking shots and turning yourself around if you find yourself facing the wrong way. Games last 5 minutes, which given the fast-pace nature of the game is perfect for a very frantic, generally high scoring game.
Fun game. Don't hesitate to download if you have PS+. There have been some occasional challenges in the servers showing offline for the game occasionally, but i'm hoping that's a temporary problem due to the game coming out.
Mario and Luigi: Dream Team (3DS):
I walked away from this at about the same time I started Witcher 3, and then went back to it after I walked away from Witcher 3.
Super Mario Sunshine:The camera is sensitive enough that you can wipe it to get a better angle during fast-paced platforming. A rookie mistake most people make with the camera in Sunshine is keeping it insanely zoomed out when it excels in the mid range. There's a certain rhythm to Sunshine, especially when using the hover nozzle, that allows for multiple camera readjustments. If positioning the camera isn't important to you in 3D platformers, then I can't really say much more to convince you of its merit.
Holy god, how the hell is this camera this bad? After playing about 80 stars into Mario 64 upon its Virtual Console release earlier in the year, I can decidedly say this game's camera is considerably worse. I just can't get past it, even with the fudge of the hover nozzle the platforming here is quite a bit less precise than something like Galaxy. I'm not sure I can make myself go on with this.
The camera is sensitive enough that you can wipe it to get a better angle during fast-paced platforming. A rookie mistake most people make with the camera in Sunshine is keeping it insanely zoomed out when it excels in the mid range. There's a certain rhythm to Sunshine, especially when using the hover nozzle, that allows for multiple camera readjustments. If positioning the camera isn't important to you in 3D platformers, then I can't really say much more to convince you of its merit.
Galaxy's camera has far worse flaws, in my opinion.
I just felt like it needed too much babysitting and had a bad habit of shifting around on its own when I really didn't want it to. Maybe if I stick with it I'd get used to that, but I'm not sure I feel like going through that.Camera isn't even the main problem of Sunshine.
The man problem would be uncharacteristic lack of QA and polish for Mario game. Then gimmicky levels with physics that doesn't work at all yet still ended up in (watermelon, pachinko).
I just finished Life is Strange Episode 4, and...wow. Just...wow. If you haven't gotten into this series yet and you like adventure games, you really need to play Life is Strange. It's one of the most emotionally effective games I've played all year. I just hope the final episode (TBA) manages to stick the landing, which is often a problem in detective thriller stories like this. *cough*Heavy Rain*cough*
I'm going to be playing the new King's Quest next, now that Sony finally fixed their pre-order screw-up. I've never played a game in this series, and this one just looks fantastic.
Got a few questions for you on life is strange:
What's the gameplay like compared to say, a telltale adventure game? Wiki makes it seem the rewind feature affects the outcome, but are there decision trees in dialogue and/or the actions you take?
How long has each episode been?
Got a few questions for you on life is strange:
What's the gameplay like compared to say, a telltale adventure game? Wiki makes it seem the rewind feature affects the outcome, but are there decision trees in dialogue and/or the actions you take?
How long has each episode been?
Don't want to step on Broodwars' toes, but I'd say the gameplay is comparable to the first season of Walking Dead, where there were actually kind of puzzles and you sort of had to do stuff to progress. The rewind feature is the gameplay hook, and the game structures the occasional obstacle around it. I've only played the first three episodes, but each has been around 3 hours if I recall correctly.
Got a few questions for you on life is strange:
What's the gameplay like compared to say, a telltale adventure game? Wiki makes it seem the rewind feature affects the outcome, but are there decision trees in dialogue and/or the actions you take?
How long has each episode been?
Don't want to step on Broodwars' toes, but I'd say the gameplay is comparable to the first season of Walking Dead, where there were actually kind of puzzles and you sort of had to do stuff to progress. The rewind feature is the gameplay hook, and the game structures the occasional obstacle around it. I've only played the first three episodes, but each has been around 3 hours if I recall correctly.
To add on to that, there are definitely branching conversation paths you can take, which the rewind feature lets you explore a bit (though sometimes the game will lock you into a series of choices w/ an area transition). And while there have definitely been puzzles, most of them are minor ones centered around "how do I get this item to this location when this event or obstacle is in my path at this point in time?" And yes, I've found the standard episode length around 2-3 hours, depending on how thoroughly you explore, how deep you go into conversation trees, and how many optional conversations you engage in (compared to Telltale's games, there are a LOT of NPCs you don't "have" to talk to, but who offer information or minor choices that pay off in later episodes).
That does change significantly in Chapter 4, though. There are some pretty significant logic puzzles and one MAJOR, intricate Sherlock Holmes-style investigation puzzle you need to do where you take all the clues you've gathered across the previous episodes & form a deduction from them. Also, episode 4 is quite a bit longer than the previous episodes, clocking in at around 4-5 hours for me.
It's also worth noting that, unlike Telltale's games, Life is Strange actually...functions on a technical level. Aside from a framerate issue I ran into that was related to my PS4 just being on too long (which I resolved with hardware reboot), I haven't run into a single crash, weird jank, or choices not carrying over correctly. The only serious flaw I've run into on a presentational standpoint is that character lip flaps just don't sync to the dialogue (and there's a bit of a "dead eye" problem with the models, where character just stare at you during conversations). They never have, and the developers have acknowledged their engine just can't do it. It's just one of those things you have to overlook in favor of just really solid storytelling and characterization.
I will say this, though: don't go into this series expecting heavy action. This is very much an "indie movie"-style adventure game, with a focus on character interaction and mood rather than "OMG!IT'SAZOMBIE!KILLIT!" It's a slow burn that I've found very rewarding to come back to every few months when a new episode releases and just enjoy "being in the moment" with the characters.
After hearing a lot of talk about the new Rhythm Heaven game, I decided it was time for me to pony up and get the original for the DS. This game is so whacky and fun I absoutely adore it.
After hearing a lot of talk about the new Rhythm Heaven game, I decided it was time for me to pony up and get the original for the DS. This game is so whacky and fun I absoutely adore it.
I just picked up a $5 copy of Rhythm Heaven Fever for Wii and love it as well. It's one of those rare games that is fun to play and everyone in the family enjoys watching.
I too picked up a cheap copy of Fever and enjoyed playing in on the WiiU, only to learn that there is significant lag when playing the Wii mode through the TV. Afterward I booted the game on the Gamepad, and sure enough there was a lag on the TV that wasn't present on the Gamepad.
I forgot to update with my findings! I too picked up a cheap copy of Fever and enjoyed playing in on the WiiU, only to learn that there is significant lag when playing the Wii mode through the TV. Afterward I booted the game on the Gamepad, and sure enough there was a lag on the TV that wasn't present on the Gamepad. But the irony was that I had already had the "lag" timing ingrained from hours of playing, and removing it totally screwed me up.Yep.
The Playstation Vita version [of Galak-Z] was cancelledFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
And **** Battletoads on the NES. Seriously, I've never seen a game so gleefully eager to instant kill you in my entire life. I don't think it's actually possible to beat that game, even with Rare Replay's pre-N64 game Rewind feature (which lets you always rewind about 30 seconds of gameplay in the past).
And **** Battletoads on the NES. Seriously, I've never seen a game so gleefully eager to instant kill you in my entire life. I don't think it's actually possible to beat that game, even with Rare Replay's pre-N64 game Rewind feature (which lets you always rewind about 30 seconds of gameplay in the past).
At the Classic Games Fest in Austin a couple of weeks ago they had a station to challenge people just to beat the speeder bike level. I never saw a single person do it.
Finally tried out Rocket League after being relentlessly badgered by a friend of mine, and I've gotta say, yeah, it's pretty good. Simple mechanics, but executed very well, and extremely addictive.
Finally playing through Mega Man X (Wii U Virtual Console). I've played little bits of the game multiple times previously, but never really sat down and gave a concerted effort. Now that I have started, surprised at how easy the game is... difficulty just feels really low compared to the 8-bit Mega Man titles I'm used to.
Still fun enough, but I think I prefer the non-X series. Do later entries get better, or keep the same feel?
... I told him to go play MM1 and get back to me on that. ...
... According to Johnny Metts and James Jones on the RFN podcast, the games are only good through about MMX4, then the series goes to ****.
Weird how default Y-axis setting is reversed, seriously threw me off. Also i see they fixed the bug with mouse cursor constantly appearing.Apparently this happened because when doctor asked me to look up i accidentally moved my mouse down and game decided that i want it reversed. Kinda clever.
I was kind of in love with it for the first two locations, and then partway through the clock factory I started to get impatient with the movement and pacing, and got really pissed off at the boss.
I was kind of in love with it for the first two locations, and then partway through the clock factory I started to get impatient with the movement and pacing, and got really pissed off at the boss.
I loved the pacing throughout. It was sort of a respite from the fast-paced games I had been playing at the time. The only boss I really hated was the ice boss...it probably took me a dozen tries (or more) to beat it.
Continuing my elongated tying off of the hobby, here are a few more entries, with a theme!
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS):
I played the first game upon release (rental, thankfully) and remember finding it kind of fun, but very underbaked as a full release (thought it would now fit nicely in the Captain Toad tier that Nintendo has created). Nonetheless, I'd read some pretty positive impressions of this game, so picked up a copy.
I was kind of in love with it for the first two locations, and then partway through the clock factory I started to get impatient with the movement and pacing, and got really pissed off at the boss. Still, I do enjoy how tactile the game is and how it replaced the more dexterous ghost fights with increased interactivity and more puzzle-solving. I just wish that more of the missions did more with path gating, as I'm getting OCD about sweeping back over old territory to find Boos and such.
The 3D on this game is also great, works really well with the diorama style of the perspective, and in practice it's actually harder/worse to play with the depth off. Also, this feels a bit more like an Elebits-style game, where you're rooting through every available cranny trying to boost your score than the semi-action approach of the first game, and I think it's definitely an improvement. I'm going to give it a bit of a break and hopefully get some of my initial enthusiasm back. (I probably played it too much in a short span of time.)
I just finished SOMA myself on the PS4, and..I really didn't like the game. The science fiction part of the game was fine, possibly even great. However, it's just bogged down by tedious, unpleasant, repetitive horror hide & seek sections that add nothing to the game. The enemies aren't even scary, just annoying. Hell, the game doesn't even bother to explain one of the biggest aspects of that horror element, despite it having a "resolution" near the end of the game. So much of the game is just spent fumbling around in samey underwater sections looking for something you can do that I just could not get into the game. It also doesn't help that the game runs like ****, with the game constantly freezing every 5-10 seconds to either load more area or autosave.
Overall, SOMA just feels like a big bucket of ideas just thrown together with no regard to how they work together. It's a mess, and I really didn't enjoy it. The whole experience feels like a half-assed Alien: Isolation clone tacked onto a genuinely cool hard science fiction story.
My current rotation of games is:
Super Mario Maker, which is thoroughly depressing.
Hard to find good levels, but also no one seems to want to play mine.
Good link to the arstechnica article.
What disappoints me most isn't that numbers are proving out my fears of what people are uploading during their chase for stars (ie: levels that I don't want to play), but the comments sectino where people defend no-touch, auto-scrolling levels getting rated higher than interactive stages because they are "works of art".
Some of those comments are made tongue-in-cheek... but not nearly enough.
Hard to find good levels, but also no one seems to want to play mine.
I've been playing Super Meat Boy again with its launch on Sony platforms. The big story has been the fact that they had to change the soundtrack, which doesn't bother me at all, and other than that it seems to be a fantastic port both on PS4 and Vita. It's the same amazingly tight and brutally difficult platforming as ever, which I'm loving all over again, especially since it has seamless cross-save between the two versions, letting me pick up my save wherever I am.
Did anyone get into the Star Wars: Battlefront beta much? I really enjoyed it, definitely captures that Star Wars feel. Some ironing out of some balancing issues and spawn issues and it'll be a lot more enjoyable.My friend played it. Said that it is a horribly balanced mess right now, but definitely enjoyable. Still very excited for it myself.
Did anyone get into the Star Wars: Battlefront beta much? I really enjoyed it, definitely captures that Star Wars feel. Some ironing out of some balancing issues and spawn issues and it'll be a lot more enjoyable.I watched some videos of people playing. It looks great, art style and all that. But it just seems to be yet another modern, online FPS. I really like all things Star Wars but am lukewarm on FPS's. I won't rush out to get a PS4 just for Battlefront. I want a SW adventure-type game, I do.
Did anyone get into the Star Wars: Battlefront beta much? I really enjoyed it, definitely captures that Star Wars feel. Some ironing out of some balancing issues and spawn issues and it'll be a lot more enjoyable.
Finishing up my rounds on the 3DS, only a few more titles to go and I will likely sell the puppy.Do you sell all of your games when you finish them once, or do you not like the 3DS specifically?
Finishing up my rounds on the 3DS, only a few more titles to go and I will likely sell the puppy.Do you sell all of your games when you finish them once, or do you not like the 3DS specifically?
Because I was sick of waiting for a new entry in the series I've been going back and playing Advance Wars: Dual Strike for DS...Just a couple of months ago, I finally obtained all 300 medals in this game, and after spending so much time with it I think it's actually become my fave. I really started to appreciate the variety in the COs, and all of the combinations in mixing and matching them. I actually don't mind that the strategies shifted in focusing on managing CO powers, as this changed up the way I played this game compared to the first two games; I prefer this to the game just being "more of the same." Sure, some things could be better balanced (the Black Bomb for example is ridiculous), but I actually didn't find the balance to be as bad as I originally felt, most things can be overcome with careful planning.
Box Boy (3DS):
I was also looking forward to this, but at about halfway through I'm finding it pretty boring. It's hard to even call it a puzzle game at this point given how easy it is, even including collecting the crowns. It looks good and has a catchy soundtrack, but my progress has thus far been perfunctory. Not a huge disappointment, though, given that it was cheap in the first place and discounted for the Black Friday period.
To be honest I feel that in some ways the games succeeding it are lacking though. The seemingly random removal of features like the ability for Pokemon to follow you, the pokephone, the pokeradio, the ability to play retro or modern music, the pokewalker, the ability to rematch gym leaders and a bloody toggleable run button!
how would you compare it to PH? I thought the actual design of the dungeons and caves was considerably betterAbout the same, i guess? Spirit Track dungeons feel a bit too short maybe? I've completed three dungeons and am pretty sure none of them had more than 4 floors.
though I actually liked the Temple of the Ocean King, and wished they kept it up. The Spirit Tracks equivalent feels watered down and thus less interesting.Spirit tower is interesting because you don't HAVE to come back to lower floors after you completed them, but if you WANT to backtrack there are a lot of stuff hidden for you. On first two lower floors around HALF of the area is inaccessible unless you have later game unlocks.
Kid Icarus Uprising:Circle pad kinda sucks for fine analog movement, but i found that you just need to make your movements more elaborate rather than keep jerking the nub all the time.
About halfway through the game I realized there were sensitivity settings for the touch screen camera/reticule, and cranked them to the max. This makes the ground portions actually playable, but the circle pad movement still blows, and I take tons of damage every time there are pits or electric floors or lava or whathaveyou.
The only Mario Party clone for me is Dokapon Kingdom. ...
(http://i1030.photobucket.com/albums/y362/tophatant123/1299590-art__1__zpsorgufjtp.jpg)Artstyle looks very similar to WarioWare stuff. Interest peaked.
I've been playing Metroid: Zero Mission since it came out on Virtual Console. I'd been looking forward to playing this for a long time after loving Super and Fusion, and despite how much I built it up in my head over the long wait for it to hit the service in North America, it has easily surpassed my expectations.
I haven't been blown away by a game like this in a long time. It takes the best aspects of both its predecessors and forms the perfect distillation of the Metroid formula. Quick pace, tight controls, absolutely nailing the feeling of progression and empowerment the series is built on. This is already one of my favorite games ever.
I've been playing Metroid: Zero Mission since it came out on Virtual Console. I'd been looking forward to playing this for a long time after loving Super and Fusion, and despite how much I built it up in my head over the long wait for it to hit the service in North America, it has easily surpassed my expectations.
I haven't been blown away by a game like this in a long time. It takes the best aspects of both its predecessors and forms the perfect distillation of the Metroid formula. Quick pace, tight controls, absolutely nailing the feeling of progression and empowerment the series is built on. This is already one of my favorite games ever.
Interested to hear more impressions once you finish the game. Zero Mission is one of my favorite GBA games, and neck-and-neck with Super Metroid for best in the series in my mind.
It's not perfect. I don't love the final section in replays, although enjoyed it the first time through. There is also one specific "bomb the hidden passage" moment that I didn't love... but that seems to be pretty normal for Metroid games too.
... Metroid: Zero Mission ... takes the best aspects of both its predecessors and forms the perfect distillation of the Metroid formula. ... one of my favorite games ever.
My only real complaint with the end game is the final mecha Ridley boss fight, which wasn't that interesting and felt pathetically easy.
@adrock: But you have to admit that Majora has the best shooting gallery of any Zelda game. I enjoyed the motion aiming of Skyward Sword enough to find the pumpkin shooting game extremely engaging despite how laughably basic it was. Imagine something as articulated as the MM shooting gallery with pointer shooting!I don't know about the shooting gallery being the best in the entire series, and not because I necessarily disagree with you. I just don't remember the others. In any case, yes, the shooting galleries in Majora's Mask 3D are very good. They're better with motion controls too which I normally have turned off.
I'm now thinking I should look into getting DQ9 on the DS afterwards or the remakes of the older games. Should I just spend the year playing the whole series? The game is working for me enough to that that thought crosses my mind.
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I'm now thinking I should look into getting DQ9 on the DS afterwards or the remakes of the older games. Should I just spend the year playing the whole series? The game is working for me enough to that that thought crosses my mind. With this showing up on the 3DS this year, if they don't screw up the port, I would recommend checking it out.
The story is also more old-time whimsical fantasy without all the angst and, well, trying to be so damn cool that RPGs have had since FF7. I'm not a teen anymore. I don't care what's cool. If anything I find cool annoying. The game isn't trying to be cool and has very traditional gameplay - it's appealing to me because I'm an old fart! Ha!
Minish Cap has a great final boss that's uncharacteristically difficult. At least, that's what memory tells me. I might have to go back to it.
I thought all Zelda final bosses are difficult?
I had a bad time with Teslagrad, mostly because the game had a habit of hard locking at some crucial times when I was stuck on a particular platforming challenge. ...
Anyone have XCOM 2? Thoughts?
Anyone have XCOM 2? Thoughts?
LOLAnyone have XCOM 2? Thoughts?
Terror From the Deep kicked ass. Still can't believe that I beat it, and the final mission had a great surprise.
That's probably not what you're asking though.
I had no issues with hard locks in Teslagrad... until the final boss. I knew his patterns and was ready to finish the game, but twice the game hard locked just before I could get the final hit. Kind of sums up the overall feelings I have about the game - it's so close to being good, but can't quite cross the finish line.
Rayman 2: The Great Escape Has anyone here played the 3DS release? I've read differing reports about the quality of that version, but wouldn't mind owning a better release of the game.
I give this game a 3.5. It has a lot of diversity and I did like the 3D effect. I'd never played it before but I'd remember hearing good things about it way back when it was first released. It definitely shows it's age not just in graphics but also in the controls especially in The Iron Mountains when racing on top of a rocket. That said, I still had a good time and quite enjoyed it. Music was also quite good in many areas.
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It's on sale right now? I might have to get it. I heard mixed things about it (namely, that is was too difficult) but the premise seemed super cool to me, and difficulty has rarely stopped me before.
Instead of playing one of the multiple Fire Emblem titles I own but haven't started, I've been going back and playing Advance Wars: Dual Strike. I'm really wishing Nintendo would have Intelligent Systems take a break from the stream of Fire Emblems to crank out a new entry in this series.At least the "casual" setting in the recent Fire Emblem games makes them play a little more like Advance Wars.
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I have been playing pass the controller co-op with the story mode of Job Island: Hard Working People also known as Help Wanted: 50 Wacky Jobs. It's a Hudson Wii Minigame collection, on the surface it would sound to the common man that this is just some bargain bin kusoge, however that is not the case. This here is a bona fide diamond in the rough, a Wii hidden gem.
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My favorite game crass of clan, other wise igi1,igi2 and everything
if you need any online service ,you can visit this site
I'm finally getting around to playing probably the biggest game on my pile of shame, Metroid Prime. I'm up to Phendrana Drifts, and I just got the thermal visor, and while I'm liking the game, I don't like it as much as the 2D games and I'd definitely still vote for Super Mario Galaxy for Game of the Decade.
I'm very excited to start (and finish) the water dungeon tonight, as it's always been a favorite of mine.
I'm finally getting around to playing probably the biggest game on my pile of shame, Metroid Prime. I'm up to Phendrana Drifts, and I just got the thermal visor, and while I'm liking the game, I don't like it as much as the 2D games and I'd definitely still vote for Super Mario Galaxy for Game of the Decade.
I'm finally getting around to playing probably the biggest game on my pile of shame, Metroid Prime. I'm up to Phendrana Drifts, and I just got the thermal visor, and while I'm liking the game, I don't like it as much as the 2D games and I'd definitely still vote for Super Mario Galaxy for Game of the Decade.
This one surprises me. Haven't you played Metroid Prime 3 before? Or the Wii Metroid Prime Trilogy? Or have you never played any Metroid Prime game before? I just feel like you've talked about the series and games before.
Playing FE:fates:conquest, and Fallout 4: Far harbour.
Fates is great but no gay marriage :( , Far harbour literally doubles the already huge Fallout 4.
Why is everyone so obsessed with the gay marriage? Don't forget FemCorrin can marry NotTharja too. Even though Soleil makes more sense story wise to swing both ways.
For anyone who likes old-school gaming, and who are gluttons for punishment, Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins (PSP) is awesome.
One nice part is that it works well as a portable because you can save between levels and it's got a generous continue system. That doesn't remove the cheap moments that are a series staple, but makes steady progress much easier.
Really enjoying this.
Now I have never played a GTA game before. So let's see what all the fuss is about... hmmm, this kind of sucks. I really wonder if this game is just really dated now and would have impressed me if I played it when it was current. The cutscenes and story are all very cool, even if they're hard on the eyes these days. Unfortunately the controls are just really terrible. It's hard to aim, when I try punching someone I'm just as likely to punch the air next to them. Ever try playing a 3D Zelda without using Z-targeting? That's basically how this plays. I figured the driving would be good but it really doesn't feel right, particularly since I was just playing a driving game.I remember playing the original GTA III not long after it first came out, maybe it was 2003 I think, and I had the exact same thoughts you're having now. The controls were just so terrible that I just couldn't have fun with the game. I have always felt the popularity of the GTA games (at least from that era) were due to the promise of the huge (at the time) worlds, and somehow it was enough of a draw for people to overlook how terrible was everything else. I'm not one such person however.
I feel like E3 this year gives people an idea of what the industry could look like if Nintendo went 3rd party with Nintendo having such a low presence and just focusing on a few games. Which is why, even if future hardware releases were Wii U level sales, I would hope they never stop providing their own hardware because what they do continues to interest me more than anything presented here by Sony or MS.
I'm just curious if it'll have anything of its own besides "#FucKonami" by the time it releases.
Dropped Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate back into my Wii U for some G-ranked missions. This game is so good.
It really makes me wish that later entries in the series also received console editions - Monster Hunter plays perfectly well on portables, but experiencing the epic battles on a big screen (with big sound) is wonderfully entertaining. It's also nice that, despite having dumped a couple hundred hours into the game, there are still challenges I've yet to take on.
Wow. I had always meant to get into that series, but I may just skip it entirely if it ends on such a sour note. Though I guess I could just play the first and pretend there are no sequels, but that never feels right. Is it worth trying the first on its own?
Wow. I had always meant to get into that series, but I may just skip it entirely if it ends on such a sour note. Though I guess I could just play the first and pretend there are no sequels, but that never feels right. Is it worth trying the first on its own?
Honestly, I'd just skip the first game. It's a terrible game that has a grand total of one good moment there at the end. You're better off playing Virtue's Last Reward, which recaps the only important details from 999 and is a far better game.
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If you want I'd live to join you for some hunts some time. I've been itching for some console MH action and I still have a few things I need to finish in 3U.
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If you want I'd live to join you for some hunts some time. I've been itching for some console MH action and I still have a few things I need to finish in 3U.
I'd be game for this, but have a hard time scheduling sessions (or playing at decent hours of the day) because of family commitments.
What were you looking to finish off?
I'm just bumming my way though the early G-Rank quests now, so not an accomplished hunter. No special goals for me, although getting some upgraded armor would be good. (Usually prefer to not get hit, but being rusty and moving into G-Rank is making that harder than it used to be.) Bow user, decent but not great (need to be more efficient and up damage output or will run into timing issues with 3+ monsters in a quest). Usually play solo.
Just finished re-learning the super basics and doing the one star quests in Monster Hunter Generations. MH4U was my first Monster Hunter game and I was enjoying it, but I stopped around the 15 hour mark (which is to say before I really got into learning much beyond the super basics) because I was swamped in games that I just wanted to play more than it. Like most reviews have mentioned, this feels like nearly identical to MH4U (at least at the basic level beyond things like Hunter Arts and Hunting Styles) and I'm enjoying it much the same. It feels like a good game to play regularly on the side and hopefully taking that approach instead of trying to blast through it in a short period of time like I do most games will help me stick with it. If anyone wants to jump online later, let me know!
One thing I’m not as much a fan of is a lot of the collectibles being found through the clouds that only appear once you touch them.Yeah, I ended up just using the badge that makes these automatically appear when I first played a level.
Thanks for the heads up, I didn't even realize there was a badge that does that. It's a shame because in a lot of instances the clouds are cleverly placed so that you'll run into them if you're collecting the beads or hitting an enemy, but I find myself running into empty areas or throwing balls of yarn at thin air just to see if there's a cloud there much too often. I might just start using that badge now if it gets worse in the later worlds.
I wanted the green ending but I didn't have enough points, some of which were because of decisions I made and some of which were locked behind multiplayer, so I also went for the red ending.You don't need to do multiplayer it's entirely optional I didn't and got the "best" ending.
Deus Ex Mankind Divided. It's cool, but it's technically rough, feels very sloppy occasionally.
I've started playing another game that came with the bundle: Okami. So I'm wondering why I didn't play this when it was brand new or when it came out on the Wii. I knew it was critically acclaimed and I knew it was a Zelda clone and I love Zelda.
Catrap is the most stupidly addictive puzzle game I've played in ages.But the most important question is:
Prompted by the recent reveal, I went back into my backlog of unplayed games and started up Red Dead Redemption. ...As I recall, if you sort of double tap the gun/trigger button it will do "snap-to" aiming. This saved the game for me. The aiming reticle is super tiny and very hard for me to see, and I don't give a crap about making headshots and whatnot. So the snap-to (borderline cheat) was a good option for me. Double-tap and start shooting, occasionally making minor adjustments with the control stick when more precision is absolutely required. Without that, the game would have been not-fun, despite all the high-quality trappings.
the gunplay is pretty satisfying, and this is a case which I think the way the reticle locks-onto the enemy works really well.
Prompted by the recent reveal, I went back into my backlog of unplayed games and started up Red Dead Redemption. ...As I recall, if you sort of double tap the gun/trigger button it will do "snap-to" aiming. This saved the game for me. The aiming reticle is super tiny and very hard for me to see, and I don't give a crap about making headshots and whatnot. So the snap-to (borderline cheat) was a good option for me. Double-tap and start shooting, occasionally making minor adjustments with the control stick when more precision is absolutely required. Without that, the game would have been not-fun, despite all the high-quality trappings.
the gunplay is pretty satisfying, and this is a case which I think the way the reticle locks-onto the enemy works really well.
I tried PS VR tonight. The picture is a little off. like 3D. It's kinda neat, but not there yet for me.Why do you hate the future? :smug:
I've played this game before, 20 years ago when Virtual Reality was supposed to be the future of gaming, TV, the internet, and everything. That failed because it was ridiculously expensive and the technology wasn't anywhere near ready at the time.
Then 5 years ago 3D was the future. Of course most people weren't that interested once they saw the hoops required to make it happen - who wants to wear special headsets/glasses just to watch TV?
But I'm sure things will be different this time around. At least the technology is much closer to being ready than it was years ago.
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The difference between 3D and VR is 3D nobody was asking for that, ever. People have been wanting VR for a long time its just been out of reach for a long time. 3D was bad, because they, the tech companies, were expecting it to replace HD. It didn't. VR is not going to replace HD, it is not going to replace TV, it is going to have a place in the market forever moving forward. ...
The Luigi game is a completely different set of levels from the Mario version. They're not remixes, the Luigi levels are significantly shorter and more difficult. New Super Mario Bros. U plays like Super Mario World, New Super Luigi U plays more like Mario 3.
Just been playing a bunch of PSVR demos. It sounds cliché, but the immersion is second to none. Sure the display could be higher-res (especially with the PS4 Pro out now), but the experience is incredible. It's hard to go back to non-VR games after this.
VR works for some games, but not all.
Moved to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze (Wii U). This isn't a series I'm usually big on, but I can't deny the quality after playing through the first world of stages.Even if you're not into it, it's worth sticking it through to the end if for no other reason than the music. There's some incredible stuff later in the game!
Moved to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze (Wii U). This isn't a series I'm usually big on, but I can't deny the quality after playing through the first world of stages.Even if you're not into it, it's worth sticking it through to the end if for no other reason than the music. There's some incredible stuff later in the game!
Almost finished with Disney Magical World 2. One of the proud ~10,000 who purchased a copy last month! I have 95/100 stickers, and I wasn't keeping track of how many total stickers were in the game. Thus, I'm surprised how close to the end I am after just about 24 hours of playtime. Really love the customization and how every little thing you do makes some sort of progress, whether it's to get new materials, craft new items, or get closer to gaining a new sticker.
I honestly bought it fully content with the idea that I'd just try it out for the weekend and return it to the store, but it's simply awesome.
La-Mulana (PC):
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La-Mulana (PC):
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Although I've only played the WiiWare version, I hold the game in high regard (despite some real love/hate over the obtuse puzzles). I liked the way you could explore and try to learn from the environment in many different areas, how the game layered puzzle on top of puzzle, and how delightful it was to uncover secrets one by one until you had mastered a whole section of the world. I even kind of enjoyed the decidedly old-school controls that work pretty well once you master them.
But the obtuse design doesn't get better with time - in fact it sometimes gets worse. After uncovering the truth about Eden, I had absolutely no idea how to progress further in that world... and to this day still haven't figured that secret (or many others) out.
I did hear from a friend that there is no "solution" though, and that's it's essentially totally random if you want to progress. I'm not entirely sure that's true, because this game hides many solutions to puzzles in places you wouldn't think to look (background artwork, clues given in entirely other parts of the game world, etc). Moral of the story? Don't be afraid to use an online guide if you want to progress deep in to the game.
miniboss in the Twin Labyrinths that seems impossible with my current equipment (I think I've got about half the items/weapons)If you talking a time-stopping bird, you can kill it without specific item (there is even achievement for it) -- it just requires a study of it's patterns and a bit of premonition on your part.
There are just too many of them, and even my expanded recorder filled up almost immediately. At this point, they mostly seem way too vague to be worth thinking about, and several I've only realized what they meant after I randomly or intuitively uncovered the secret.Make notes, it's much easier than clunky in-game recorder.
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Make notes, it's much easier than clunky in-game recorder.
I gave up on Super Mario 3D World. I got bored. So I moved on to Super Paper Mario. I got bored with that real quick so I moved on to Mega Man 8. I got bored real quick so I put in Gremlins DVD and had more fun with that than all those games.
Gamer is not the best word to describe me, compulsive collector who used to be a gamer maybe.
I gave up on Super Mario 3D World. I got bored. So I moved on to Super Paper Mario. I got bored with that real quick so I moved on to Mega Man 8. I got bored real quick so I put in Gremlins DVD and had more fun with that than all those games.
Gamer is not the best word to describe me, compulsive collector who used to be a gamer maybe.
If you enjoy movie commentaries, I recommend the RedLetterMedia commentary of Gremlins ;)
On obtuse puzzles in La Mulana: the most absurd ones are nearly at the end and so you don't even know the full extent of it.
(http://i.imgur.com/mFJxqwT.png)
I highly recommend not to even bother with giant scales room and with yellow medicine and just look it up. Mantras -- another late-game BS puzzle are actually very to cheese so they're okay.miniboss in the Twin Labyrinths that seems impossible with my current equipment (I think I've got about half the items/weapons)If you talking a time-stopping bird, you can kill it without specific item (there is even achievement for it) -- it just requires a study of it's patterns and a bit of premonition on your part.There are just too many of them, and even my expanded recorder filled up almost immediately. At this point, they mostly seem way too vague to be worth thinking about, and several I've only realized what they meant after I randomly or intuitively uncovered the secret.Make notes, it's much easier than clunky in-game recorder.
So they should have done what Fire Emblem/Zelda/Mario/Final Fantasy do and just make each game a stand-alone story (obviously not counting direct sequels). Could have been the start of the Chrono series, a place where Square could feel free to experiment with the RPG formula versus the almost archaic Dragon Quest.
"Cheat" isn't the right word in this case. I much prefer "collaborative puzzle solving".
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
I've never actually played through this game before, which is a shame, because it's absolutely amazing. I'm probably close to halfway done (3 pendants and 3 crystals), but this could end up rivaling Ocarina of Time for greatest of all time.
Super Metroid (SNES)
Similar to my LttP story above. Never played this seriously before, and it's absolutely amazing.
Still working at it. Don't think I'm too far in right now...Have Power Bombs, Dash, Ice Beam...
I started playing Stardew Valley, though I'm torn as to whether I should keep playing or stop and wait for the Switch version. As i was led to believe, it's a really good Harvest Moon clone, and that's a style of game I'd much rather have on a handheld. The problem is if the Switch version is coming at or near launch it'll be coming around the same time as the new Story of Seasons, and I don't know that I want to be playing two Harvest Moon games at once.
Yo, I'm about 80% through Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and I honestly don't know how much longer I can go on.
The action in this game is so boring, the plot, so bland. On one hand, sailing around the sea in my unstoppable god-killing machine, The Jackdaw, is fun, if only because nothing except legendary ships can stand in my way (and some of those are cheap as hell. Seriously, armor everywhere except on the back? That's ridiculous!), and collecting things certainly is... time consuming, but the fact that very few collectible items contribute to tangible upgrades and the world-building is so unnecessarily dense, the reason I've been playing this game for the better part of a year and a half in between much more exciting releases is because it wears me out so much. Yet the completionist, obsessive-compulsive part of me wants to stop at every sliver of beach to pick up stupid treasure chests and Animus fragments.
Also, the controls are wonky.
Been playing some older games lately and having a blast.
Dreamcast:
Power Stone - still great and a real shame we haven't seen more of this series
Furthermore you sword & shield dude appears to have no way of defending with his shield, so that's great.When your weapon is drawn, hold R to block.
When your weapon is drawn, hold R to block.
If I recall, the only thing that ZR and ZL are used for is during swimming, to move directly up or down.
There's a reason I nominated Black and White for retroactive. I'm just going to say that now.
The music is the best in the entire series.I fixed that for you.
I want to wreck every trainer mercilessly and show them how much better I am, while catching and developing a team that's aesthetically appealing to me. The previous Pokemon games were satisfying to me because the adventure was straightforward and the actions the player performed seemed logical.
I understand that Pokemon is a child's game, which is largely why I have started to move on from the series and focus more on games like SMT, which, while not much more mature, at least attempt to create more interesting settings and narratives, atop being more compelling monster-catching games.
@lolmonade So... The Hunger Games.
I still don't "get" Minecraft - which feels disappointing. I appreciate the way that survival mode offers some threads of Rogue-like gameplay (randomly generated world with some standard goals; highly interactive objects creating a lot of emergent play) but just don't find it very enjoyable. Not the right game for me, I suppose.Have you tried it in multiplayer? For me, it's in that category with games like Animal Crossing in that the game itself is nothing special so it's boring in single player, but it can be a lot of fun in multiplayer as we create our own experiences together.
I still don't "get" Minecraft - which feels disappointing. I appreciate the way that survival mode offers some threads of Rogue-like gameplay (randomly generated world with some standard goals; highly interactive objects creating a lot of emergent play) but just don't find it very enjoyable. Not the right game for me, I suppose.Have you tried it in multiplayer? For me, it's in that category with games like Animal Crossing in that the game itself is nothing special so it's boring in single player, but it can be a lot of fun in multiplayer as we create our own experiences together.
Oohhboy, what alternative voxel games from Minecraft do you recommend?Have you tried Terraria? It's 2D side-scrolling instead of 3D, but it's pretty fun and also has multiplayer. It will be heading to Switch at some point, also.
Dropping the swingy CO powers is ok with me, although maybe they make a return later in the game? I'm not very far in yet.They do, but they're generally less powerful and more situational.
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One of the best changes is how aircraft carriers work.
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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - After not playing since mid-April due to other games, I finished up the Gerudo Desert main quest by talking to the princess there, wrapping things up, and then doing a sand slug race for a shrine prize. Won't bother with any DLC, as I don't think it's free?
Well, I'm coming from the perspective that I never played these games back in the day, and no one outside Nintendo really makes 3D Cartoony Platformers anymore. I still have my gripes with the game, but overall I'm finding the experience kind of refreshing. It definitely helps that Vicarious Visions did a fantastic job completely overhauling the scenery.
Still, WTF with these bosses? The 3rd one's alright, but the 2nd one is incredibly annoying, and the game gives you ZERO hints how you're supposed to hurt the 1st. It turned out I had the right idea, but you can only hurt him from one specific spot & there's no clear indication of this.
And whoever designed the secrets requirements in Crash 1 can **** off.
I'm playing Red Steel 2 because modern video games are garbage.
I'm playing Red Steel 2 because modern video games are garbage.
Picked this up a while back for cheap and of course never looked at it since because I'm planning my 15 minutes of reality TV fame on the show Hoarders. How is it though? I heard the first one was utter tripe, but the second one looked decent and cartoony. D'you think it delivers on the promise of Motion Plus?
Also, I couldn't connect to an online match, but my Switch was connected to the internet, and I had just downloaded updates on 3DS and Wii U. I'll try to figure that out tomorrow unless anyone here has any suggestions other than unplugging my modem/router and plugging it back in.A bit late, but I have one possible suggestion. If you always keep your Switch in sleep mode instead of powering it off, then try turning it off completely and turning it back on. I've heard that being on (including sleep) for too long can cause connection issues, for some reason.
Nearing the end of Undertale on my Vita and...really? This is what the internet lost its mind over a few years back? This totally average, borderline dull, gaming culture wank-a-thon? Really?
Nearing the end of Undertale on my Vita and...really? This is what the internet lost its mind over a few years back? This totally average, borderline dull, gaming culture wank-a-thon? Really?
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FTL is another. ...
Yeah I actively wanted to punch Undertale. It was the most fedora-y game I've ever played, and the fawning reception it continues to receive says a lot about video game enthusiast culture.Haha, may I ask what you mean by "ferdora-y"? I haven't played the game, but my brother sent me a Youtube video of the final boss music. Goddamn, it's so good.
No! Not hipster! Fedora!
http://www.collegehumor.com/post/7040939/14-fedora-lords-who-should-be-banned-from-the-internet
I mean, that link was probably too focused on romance stuff, but I'm talking about the sort of dudes that fit that profile, their attitude, aesthetic, and humor. I would venture to say there's a lot of overlap with like Hot Topic emo-punks. Theater techs is another proxy. Sensitive redditors. Like, people who quote Monty Python sketches at length, say things like "you amuse me", post anime reaction .gifs. I'm kind of punching down here, but it's not really straight nerd-dom either, as it involves a particular mix of pompousness, unintentional cringe humor, and twee sensibility. Fedoras are kind of an ineffable symbol of this (cringe), and I found that Undertale exuded that ethos with every fiber of its being, on top of being a plodding, shitty game.This was a great response. Thanks for taking the time to explain that. I've been curious to see what all the fuss regarding Undertale was all about. If I eventually get around to playing it, I wonder if I'll feel the same way. I mean, I've read how the game kind of uses your save file in a unique way and that you have to play the game at least twice to see the true ending (as well as hear the aforementioned baller final boss music) which may be a deterrent in starting Undertale. I generally don't make time for multiple play throughs of a game unless I feel like it's transcendental, or I liked a game and many years have passed.
I mean, that link was probably too focused on romance stuff, but I'm talking about the sort of dudes that fit that profile, their attitude, aesthetic, and humor. I would venture to say there's a lot of overlap with like Hot Topic emo-punks. Theater techs is another proxy. Sensitive redditors. Like, people who quote Monty Python sketches at length, say things like "you amuse me", post anime reaction .gifs. I'm kind of punching down here, but it's not really straight nerd-dom either, as it involves a particular mix of pompousness, unintentional cringe humor, and twee sensibility. Fedoras are kind of an ineffable symbol of this (cringe), and I found that Undertale exuded that ethos with every fiber of its being, on top of being a plodding, shitty game.This was a great response. Thanks for taking the time to explain that. I've been curious to see what all the fuss regarding Undertale was all about. If I eventually get around to playing it, I wonder if I'll feel the same way. I mean, I've read how the game kind of uses your save file in a unique way and that you have to play the game at least twice to see the true ending (as well as hear the aforementioned baller final boss music) which may be a deterrent in starting Undertale. I generally don't make time for multiple play throughs of a game unless I feel like it's transcendental, or I liked a game and many years have passed.
Recently, I started Castlevania: Circle of the Moon since I haven't beaten it in over a decade and Cave Story+ is killing me.
Technically, I completed Cave Story+ since I got the Bad and Normal endings. I'm currently in Blood Stained Sanctuary. ...
I still haven't beaten that game's final ending. The ultra-challenging last levels aren't really enjoyable for me, so usually ends with me giving up after a handful of failures... but every now and then I go back to try again on a whim. Maybe I'll just YouTube that ending at some point and be done with it.I've done this many times before. I prefer not to since I have no idea what I'm doing when I revisit the game. That's why I never completed Champion's Road in Super Mario 3D World or like the last 1/3 of Skies of Arcadia Legend. Sometimes I restart a game entirely to commit to finishing it.
I love the balanced challenge and enemy AI. It's not easy to nudge them into traffic, and even with a crash, you or other racers can still manage to come back. Of course you can also play as the cops and smash things up if you're into rough justice. Great way to get your aggression out til the next F-Zero.
I liked Destiny 1 but didn't play very far into it. That series is something I'd really love to see ported to Switch.
I love the balanced challenge and enemy AI. It's not easy to nudge them into traffic, and even with a crash, you or other racers can still manage to come back. Of course you can also play as the cops and smash things up if you're into rough justice. Great way to get your aggression out til the next F-Zero.
Did you ever play any of the Burnout games? Particularly 3 or 4? Those weren't on Nintendo consoles sadly, although 1 and 2 were. It's from the third one onwards where they really allow you to run other racers off the track and send them flying, so that one's probably the coolest.
I liked the game but was a little miffed at first that there was a cutscene at every crash. NFS: Hot Pursuit does the same and it's kinda cool but kinda frustrating to suddenly go from cutscene back to driving really fast.
Other nitpicky things have cropped up since I became a NFS fiend:
*Some races have rubberbanding AI. They'll be hard in the first third and last third of the race, give you a break in the middle, and force you to do the last third perfectly.
*Others only allow you to win with the "right" car, no matter how well you drive, even if the cars are closely matched
*Enemy drivers frequently make tight turns perfectly and somehow end up going even faster afterwards >:-|
*Time limits for medals can be brutal, even with frequent trial and error and incredible driving
*Shortcuts are often not shorter (which is stated in the game) but they're also too narrow to use and the game doesn't make it easy to see ahead sometimes. Loading or framerate issues? Not sure
*There are brief parts of some levels where a whole panel of the screen doesn't load or flickers, which is not acceptable!
*Wish load times were a little faster considering all the retries
Sonic Adventure 2: BattleJust stop it.
A - Ranks
uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Korok Seeds
uuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Help me I'm caught in completionist hell. :C
Just stop it.
By the way, even though still early in teh game, Chrono Trigger is really good.
Everyone should play this at some point. What's that? Everyone else already did..?
Really regret not putting more effort into this sooner. After just a few hours, it's easy to see why it's got a huge following.
By the way, even though still early in teh game, Chrono Trigger is really good.
Everyone should play this at some point. What's that? Everyone else already did..?
Really regret not putting more effort into this sooner. After just a few hours, it's easy to see why it's got a huge following.
Yeah Chrono Trigger has tons of heart. I too played it first on DS and initially intended to blaze through it as fast as possible. However, once a lot of the character-specific sidequests opened up I did them anyway and I would highly encourage you to do the same. I won't say which ones, but there's a few pretty impactful ones that really grew my affection for the characters.
I've heard people say its best to think of Chrono Cross as an "alternate reality/universe" similar to how most every Fire Emblem game is in its own world with shared themes across the games. Still have an unopened copy of Chrono Cross sitting on my shelf for the PSX, never set aside the time and eye stamina (from the 32-bit jaggies!) to actually give it a go. Though some of the designs are neat.
I've been playing through Knack 2, and IMO it is a dramatically better game than its predecessor. For one thing, the designers made an effort to finally rebalance the gameplay in favor of something akin to the LEGO games. In the first game, you died in 2-3 hits, no matter how many relics you had or where you were in the game. And when you got hit, that damage was persistent until you either found more relics, you hit the next area, or you died and respawned at the last checkpoint. Now, when you get hit, you lose a pile of relics & get smaller as usual, but if you can avoid damage for a few seconds, the relics fly back on and reattach, essentially giving you regenerating health.
The game also plays a lot more with alternating size & scale. Outside of the Stealth Knack sequences in the first game, you always started a stage small & progressed through the stage progressively growing larger. It lacked variety. Now, you can shrink back down to Little Knack at any time to fit through small holes & find secrets or to navigate puzzles.
Oh yeah, there are actual puzzles & platforming now. They're basic, but I find them satisfying enough.
You also have a skill tree of stat boosts & new moves you acquire by progressing through the story & finding XP crates.
So far, I'm about 1/3 of the way through the game, but I like it so far. I think Sony actually hit the "all ages cartoons platformer" mark they were aiming for, especially since you can play it local Co-Op. I'd recommend it for kids or the Young At Heart (TM).
I've been playing through Knack 2, and IMO it is a dramatically better game than its predecessor. For one thing, the designers made an effort to finally rebalance the gameplay in favor of something akin to the LEGO games. In the first game, you died in 2-3 hits, no matter how many relics you had or where you were in the game. And when you got hit, that damage was persistent until you either found more relics, you hit the next area, or you died and respawned at the last checkpoint. Now, when you get hit, you lose a pile of relics & get smaller as usual, but if you can avoid damage for a few seconds, the relics fly back on and reattach, essentially giving you regenerating health.
The game also plays a lot more with alternating size & scale. Outside of the Stealth Knack sequences in the first game, you always started a stage small & progressed through the stage progressively growing larger. It lacked variety. Now, you can shrink back down to Little Knack at any time to fit through small holes & find secrets or to navigate puzzles.
Oh yeah, there are actual puzzles & platforming now. They're basic, but I find them satisfying enough.
You also have a skill tree of stat boosts & new moves you acquire by progressing through the story & finding XP crates.
So far, I'm about 1/3 of the way through the game, but I like it so far. I think Sony actually hit the "all ages cartoons platformer" mark they were aiming for, especially since you can play it local Co-Op. I'd recommend it for kids or the Young At Heart (TM).
What a coincidence! I have this checked out from the library right now, and I finished the first two chapters of the game. I'm enjoying it, but I can't comment on any improvements on the original Knack since I didn't play it. Seems like Knack left quite a bad taste in most PlayStation 4 owners' mouths. I guess that's why this sequel bombed everywhere. I've read that the game sort of overindulges on its story length, making the game sort of feel like it goes on for longer than you'd expect.
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Hotel Dusk. Just go with Hotel Dusk. I started but never finished it. I still have it somewhere.
Not sure which DS game to play next. Any thoughts on the following games?I haven't played any of them, so I can just say that it depends on what kind of mood you're in. Hotel Dusk and Trace Memory are more laid-back games, whilst FFCC and Zelda are more action-y. And Zelda requires use of the stylus the whole time, so you've gotta be prepared for that.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates
Hotel Dusk
Trace Memory
Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
I'll be playing one from that list, but not sure which.
* Max & the Magic Marker (WiiWare) - My kids thought it would be run to revisit this game. They were right. Not a brilliant game, but the magic marker portion is clever and enjoyable.The sequel to this game is on the Switch and there is a demo. It looks like a standard puzzle platformer this time, without elements of drawing.
* Max & the Magic Marker (WiiWare) - My kids thought it would be run to revisit this game. They were right. Not a brilliant game, but the magic marker portion is clever and enjoyable.The sequel to this game is on the Switch and there is a demo. It looks like a standard puzzle platformer this time, without elements of drawing.
Question - I have Persona 4 golden I've yet to play, but my Library also has Persona 5. Any suggestions for someone who hasn't played a Persona on where to start?
Thanks for the overview. I'm tempted to start with Persona 4 just because I have it. When you say there are hours of text dialogue before you get into the gameplay, are there save points through that? Only concern now is that my gaming free time is roughly 1-2 hrs an evening, so might be a tall ask if I have to play 4-5 hrs straight without a save in that.
Fell down the XType+ hole again yesterday, ...
By the by, in case anyone wants to know, Crystal Chronicles Ring of Fates is a hot mess of story and character but decent character customization and dungeon design, but Crystal Chronicles Echoes of Time is one of the best action RPGs Square Enix has ever produced, with amazing multiplayer, great character customization, fabulous dungeon design, and an antagonist with the best sense of fashion in history.
Yes, I'm placing it above Kingdom Hearts, because it actually has a decent narrative.
I feel like coop Cuphead is insanely harder than solo.I haven’t played solo. I’m basing my expectations on my self-observed limits of personal video game skill (which is low to medium). Parrying a partner’s ghost to stay alive is something my friend and I did often through several stages.
While I have no particular exposure to Persona Dungeons or structure, something I would note about TMS' dungeon design is that it is more or less all the content of the game. The hubs are extremely small and there's very little NPC interaction to be had, so their extended structure and length seems justified. Maybe that isn't the case with P5.
Rocket league like any sports or game has a learning curve. I find the problem for me beyond me sucking is the high level play is absurd. With other sports after learning the rules and playing some games you get an idea of what is happening so when you watch a pro game you have a feel for it.
Not so with RL, it feels BS with flying turbo boost. That aspect of the game is pretty much useless to me as even in the tutorial I barely managed to execute any reasonable moves and that require a lot of repetition just to do it once. It lacks the easy to start, hard to master. It's more stupid hard to start, disgustingly horrible to even consider mastering. Win or lose you don't know why.
It also lacks any sort of skill transfer in or out. Whatever you know about driving or piloting is inapplicable to this game.
The game fails to live up to my expectations, but those expectations were based entirely off nostalgia for the original - which probably wouldn't hold up all that well today if I were to play it.It makes some sense, the sequel has a different feel to it so I can see how a fan of the first game would be disappointed in it. Myself, I never played either game when I was a kid, so I had no expectations for them.
So....bear in mind i'm roughly gold rank after probably a good thousand hours in Rocket league between PS4 and PC, so definitely not top tier. But mastering flying boost is something IMO that is much less important than figuring out good field positioning, the right time to be aggressive vs when to try and counter your opponent, and if you're playing 2s or 3s - proper cycling of offense and defense positions.
Really, you see these gifs online of air ballers flying the ball all the way across the field, I think that represents the top 1% of players. I think if you work on the above, as well as figure out enough of flight to hit air balls towards the goal or make saves, you'll be in good shape.
So....bear in mind i'm roughly gold rank after probably a good thousand hours in Rocket league between PS4 and PC, so definitely not top tier. But mastering flying boost is something IMO that is much less important than figuring out good field positioning, the right time to be aggressive vs when to try and counter your opponent, and if you're playing 2s or 3s - proper cycling of offense and defense positions.
Really, you see these gifs online of air ballers flying the ball all the way across the field, I think that represents the top 1% of players. I think if you work on the above, as well as figure out enough of flight to hit air balls towards the goal or make saves, you'll be in good shape.
Positioning is so key in Rocket League, but most people just want to be the dude after the ball. And most matches end up being like a children's soccer game. Everyone running after the ball. Once you start to recognize the angles the ball takes once it goes into a corner you can start to learn where you need to be to score goals or to have key scoring chances.
I was worried that the game would incomprehensible to someone who has never played and knows nothing about any Persona game, but I'm doing perfectly fine for the first few hours of the game.
So.
Darksiders.
So I was curious to see how Boom Blox Bash Party (also Wii) would improve on the formula since it received higher ratings.Interesting you would say that, as I felt the sequel did a mostly good job avoiding the types of levels which felt borderline broken in the original Boom Blox. Not to say there aren't still some with frustrating mechanics, but on the whole the level design felt a lot more solid to me. Though, I still find both games to be lacking overall, but I liked the sequel better.
Initially, things seemed pretty normal. A few new concepts thrown in, and it felt like they lost focus somewhere along the way because there was a lot of time spent on ideas that weren't as good or "pure" as they focused on in the original.
So I really enjoyed Boom Blox on Wii. It was simple, but well executed and felt like they packed in as much content as possible around the key concept of knocking over a tower of blocks. So I was curious to see how Boom Blox Bash Party (also Wii) would improve on the formula since it received higher ratings.
... dug out my GBA ...
Monster Hunter: World is great. You should play it.
Monster Hunter: World is great. You should play it.
I would, but there's too much expensive other stuff coming out right now (No No Kuni 2 just came out, along with Burnout Paradise, and I still have My Hero Academia S2 & God of War in April). I probably won't be able to afford it till May, let alone have time for it.
Monster Hunter: World is great. You should play it.
I would, but there's too much expensive other stuff coming out right now (No No Kuni 2 just came out, along with Burnout Paradise, and I still have My Hero Academia S2 & God of War in April). I probably won't be able to afford it till May, let alone have time for it.
Understandable. I'm waiting on Burnout Paradise til I can find it for $20. Still undecided on God of War, but the gameplay trailers have looked better than I expected it to.
Dammit ejamer now you got me doing it!
Shantae: Risky's Revenge(Director's Cut) - Steam
As fun as this game is, one part reaffirms my dislike of coffee. I know I have one of the sequels from the WiiU eshop. If I ever finish this, I should give that a go one of these days.
Monster Hunter: World is great. You should play it.
I would, but there's too much expensive other stuff coming out right now (No No Kuni 2 just came out, along with Burnout Paradise, and I still have My Hero Academia S2 & God of War in April). I probably won't be able to afford it till May, let alone have time for it.
Understandable. I'm waiting on Burnout Paradise til I can find it for $20. Still undecided on God of War, but the gameplay trailers have looked better than I expected it to.
As for Monster Hunter World, I've put over 40 hours into it, and it's really not my thing. The big weak point is the combat, which feels clumsy & random next to games like Bloodborne or Nioh. It doesn't help that the lock-on camera actually makes combat worse by not locking your character into a dueling stance. It feels like you spend 90% of your time chasing after a monster, you mash away at it and watch meaningless numbers fly by (because there's no indication of what kind of damage you're doing relative to the monster's health pool), the monster runs away, wash, rinse, repeat.
The setpiece battles are nice, and I feel like I could really get into this game if it wasn't so clunky.
Man, Ni No Kuni 2 has absolutely no ambitions towards taking a single creative risk. *sigh* In CH. 9 (the Final Chapter), and it's so lacking in compelling motivation.
Man, Ni No Kuni 2 has absolutely no ambitions towards taking a single creative risk. *sigh* In CH. 9 (the Final Chapter), and it's so lacking in compelling motivation.
You speaking narratively, or gameplay-wise?
Depending on what you are looking for there are much, much better games of that type than Minecraft out there.Out of curiosity, which ones do you have in mind?
Wizard of Legend feels pretty good in handheld more on Switch. I'm still pretty bad at the game, I've only gotten past the 1st world boss once in my 10 runs, but I'm still getting the hang of it and trying to optimize my loadout. But the combat feels pretty satisfying and the boss fights are very good. Also I'm still pretty wear overall so I still need to grind for better equipmentI've reached, but never defeated, the third tier boss several times. If you're looking to get far, I recommend Aegis Shield very strongly, as well as a basic or Signature AoE. I often run Relic discount as my starting equipment in order to pick up as much equipment as possible, though for a while I was rocking the Grit Cloak and defense boosting relic.
I've rolled credits on Detroit: Become Human, and...wow, that was actually pretty exceptional. I've had a mixed history with David Cage's games. I liked Heavy Rain, but it had some pretty terrible writing & that plot twist at the ending makes no sense whatsoever. Beyond: 2 Souls had some spectacular setpieces, but the way it told the story out of order meant that your choices never actually meant anything since the devs couldn't guarantee a linear progression of events. It also had some really stupid QTE design.
Detroit feels like a refinement on Heavy Rain, both in terms of controls & pacing. The game flips between protagonists every chapter, and it does a great job of keeping the momentum going. It also helps that...outside of one critical plot element that is never explained, the 3 plot lines are well-written despite falling back on cliche from time to time. The game has countless branching points that I could see leading to a great deal of replayability. The game will often stick you in a situation where it presents you with 4-5 things to do, and it only allows you time to select 2 or 3 of them, and the game keeps track of that. It also tell you it keeps track of that via the in-game flow chart.
Aside from a bit at the end where one of my earlier choices doomed a few of my characters to die that felt really cheap (I certainly rectified that once I rolled credits), I came away from this game quite satisfied. Highly recommended.
I've rolled credits on Detroit: Become Human, and...wow, that was actually pretty exceptional. I've had a mixed history with David Cage's games. I liked Heavy Rain, but it had some pretty terrible writing & that plot twist at the ending makes no sense whatsoever. Beyond: 2 Souls had some spectacular setpieces, but the way it told the story out of order meant that your choices never actually meant anything since the devs couldn't guarantee a linear progression of events. It also had some really stupid QTE design.
Detroit feels like a refinement on Heavy Rain, both in terms of controls & pacing. The game flips between protagonists every chapter, and it does a great job of keeping the momentum going. It also helps that...outside of one critical plot element that is never explained, the 3 plot lines are well-written despite falling back on cliche from time to time. The game has countless branching points that I could see leading to a great deal of replayability. The game will often stick you in a situation where it presents you with 4-5 things to do, and it only allows you time to select 2 or 3 of them, and the game keeps track of that. It also tell you it keeps track of that via the in-game flow chart.
Aside from a bit at the end where one of my earlier choices doomed a few of my characters to die that felt really cheap (I certainly rectified that once I rolled credits), I came away from this game quite satisfied. Highly recommended.
Awesome. I'm not rushing out the door to get this game, but if you're saying it's more in-line with Heavy Rain than other David Cage games, I'm in.
Twitter sure loved raking this game over the coals at release, but I can overlook some cringe-worthy dialogue and heavy-handedness in story telling if the overall narrative is engaging enough in these kinds of games.
I've rolled credits on Detroit: Become Human, and...wow, that was actually pretty exceptional. I've had a mixed history with David Cage's games. I liked Heavy Rain, but it had some pretty terrible writing & that plot twist at the ending makes no sense whatsoever. Beyond: 2 Souls had some spectacular setpieces, but the way it told the story out of order meant that your choices never actually meant anything since the devs couldn't guarantee a linear progression of events. It also had some really stupid QTE design.
Detroit feels like a refinement on Heavy Rain, both in terms of controls & pacing. The game flips between protagonists every chapter, and it does a great job of keeping the momentum going. It also helps that...outside of one critical plot element that is never explained, the 3 plot lines are well-written despite falling back on cliche from time to time. The game has countless branching points that I could see leading to a great deal of replayability. The game will often stick you in a situation where it presents you with 4-5 things to do, and it only allows you time to select 2 or 3 of them, and the game keeps track of that. It also tell you it keeps track of that via the in-game flow chart.
Aside from a bit at the end where one of my earlier choices doomed a few of my characters to die that felt really cheap (I certainly rectified that once I rolled credits), I came away from this game quite satisfied. Highly recommended.
Awesome. I'm not rushing out the door to get this game, but if you're saying it's more in-line with Heavy Rain than other David Cage games, I'm in.
Twitter sure loved raking this game over the coals at release, but I can overlook some cringe-worthy dialogue and heavy-handedness in story telling if the overall narrative is engaging enough in these kinds of games.
I feel like the gaming community just finds it hip to hate on David Cage, but I've always enjoyed the earnestness of his work. I will say that the majority of the cast being androids is particularly conducive to Cage's odd writing style. It makes it easier to excuse when you run into an awkward line of dialogue or voice acting that's just a little "off".
Jim Sterling hated on the mundanity of your tasks in the early chapters, but he seems to forget that those are not only there to establish tone & setting, but also to get the player used to the controls & different types of QTE inputs in a stress-free scenario.
In general, though, I thought the racial & domestic abuse elements in the story were handled well, and there aren't any out of nowhere moments like the sex scene in Heavy Rain or the Native American demon exorcism (yes, really) in Beyond. It's just consistently good.
The truth is, very few video games have truly compelling narratives. Many are elevated by the way their gameplay enhances the narrative. If you want a good story, watch a movie, read a book. If you're willing to acknowledge that video game narratives are inherently mediocre, you'll likely be able to enjoy them and forgive them for their flaws far more.
I put some time into Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon. I’ve been playing on Veteran. I’m tempted to look up if there are bonuses for playing on Veteran. If not, I’ll switch to Casual. I got to Stage 4. I’m definitely a post-Symphony of the Night Castlevania fan. I struggle with platforming when there are Medusa Head-like enemies flying around.
I've been trying to sink time into Xenoblade Chronicles 2's Challenge Mode, but it's been very difficult. I caught a bug recently, and its wormed my way into my heart. Now, I come to talk about Hollow Knight.
I have “so frustratingly hard that I cannot recommend this game” angrily scrawled in my notes, and the quest for the true ending remains locked behind a stupid, cheap, BS fight with a giant mantis whom I hate so, so much.
I just finished Captain Spirit as well, and I found it rather tedious and pointless. The checklist design of the game just emphasizes how the game is all about aimless wandering. I actually got stuck for a long time because I couldn't find one of the key items to complete Chris' costume. I had to look up online where it was because I got tired of walking through the same 3 areas in circles for an hour.
When the actual plot arrives after 2 hours of aimless, boring wandering, I just rolled my eyes because it's the obvious storyline for a single father who recently lost his wife & succumbed to alcoholism. It's so by-the-numbers & blatant it makes David Cage look subtle by comparison.
The ending teases something actually interesting happening in Life is Strange 2, which tells me nothing because that's kind of the minimum one would expect from a sequel to Life is Strange.
Meh. I like adventure games, but I like them to have a point & tempo and this really...didn't have that.
My friend gave me a Resident Evil Revelaitons 2 code for Switch. I bought a 128 GB micro SD card because I only had 14 GB of internal storage left. The download took almost three hours.
I feel weird complaining about a free game. RER2 appears to be lower budget compared to the first game though it’s been a while since I played it. Claire’s design is off. She looks like someone cosplaying as Claire.
I didn’t get very far. The load times are atrocious. I timed loading from the last checkpoint, and it look over a minute. That’s pretty much all I need to know about this game.
I bought it when it came out and enjoyed it back then, but I haven't played it in a while. This update is making me want to go back to it.
I just (re-)started Donkey Kong Country Returns, never made it very far first time I tried it a few years back. I think I might be about half-way now, just passed the Cave world. Some of those minecart levels and rocket barrel stages really don't allow for anything less than perfect timing it seems huh.Yes, it’s incredibly frustrating. I enjoyed the game overall even if I sometimes wanted to throw my controller into the sun.
What's the best and easiest of the Mega Man games if I wanted to sample the series just once?Mega Man 2 is the one which was made easier for the NA audience, so that would probably be a good place to begin. If you can complete Metal Man first and get the Metal Blade, it makes most of the game trivial. Another bit of advice is that you'll probably want Item 2 before you play Heat Man's stage.
What's the best and easiest of the Mega Man games if I wanted to sample the series just once?Mega Man 2 is the one which was made easier for the NA audience, so that would probably be a good place to begin. If you can complete Metal Man first and get the Metal Blades, it makes most of the game trivial. Another bit of advice is that you'll probably want Item 2 before you play Heat Man's stage.
Mega Man 3 is probably one of the tougher games in the series due to the haywire difficulty of the later stages. Likely not a good start point for a newbie.
After 2, Mega Man 5 is fairly easy as well, due to how absurdly powerful is the Mega Buster's charge shot.
The original Mega Man may still be the most difficult of the bunch, in part due to the quality-of-life improvements brought by the sequels (the original has no password system, no energy reserve tanks, wonkier physics, etc). Probably not good to start with the first game even though it's the first game.
I started playing X2 following X1, and it's still not a game I care much for. Something that the later games got really obsessed with is arbitrary time restrictions in order to unlock the "true ending", and that nonsense started here with the hunt for Zero's parts. After your 1st 2 bosses, you have 3 sub-bosses that jump from stage to stage, and you get one shot with each of them. If you ignore them or fail to beat them, they run away and you lose out on the true ending.
... How is the DLC? Does it change the experience of the main game a lot?
How is the DLC? Does it change the experience of the main game a lot?
I played the OnRush beta a while back and while the racing felt good I didn't see how the modes they had could keep me engaged for long.
After really liking The Last Story, I moved on to Pandora's Tower. ...
After really liking The Last Story, I moved on to Pandora's Tower. Did anyone here play that? I could really use some advice, because I'm now in the sixth tower and even the most basic enemies are routinely wrecking my ****. Already died five time without even making it to a third room, it's ridiculous how much the difficulty has suddenly spiked. The GameFAQs for this one are really bad unfortunately.I played the game twice back-to-back a couple years ago and absolutely loved it and I don't remember it being that difficult. I don't remember any specific tips or anything but I remember that I never had to grind.
I'm constantly short on absolutely everything, too. Money, useful supplies, healing items. I've upgraded the sword just twice, purposefully not upgrading the dual-blades or scythe. Did you guys & gals struggle this much too, or am I just really really bad at it? Are you supposed to just dodge-roll everywhere? Do they expect you to return to previous towers and grind for scraps? I'd assume not because the cash drops are pitiful and everytime you venture to a tower you're also risking Elena's transformation gauge...
Just want to mention that I love seeing your reports about a bunch of old Wii games.I haven't had much time for gaming lately - but have a whole shelf of Wii games still waiting for my attention so am living vicariously through your reports.
I played the game twice back-to-back a couple years ago and absolutely loved it and I don't remember it being that difficult. I don't remember any specific tips or anything but I remember that I never had to grind.There is a timing based charge attack, are you doing that correctly?
Pandora's Tower warning: You can **** your save over right near the end of the game based on a few factors, so I recommend leaving your monster lady love alone as much as possible in case you need to activate one-off interaction scenes to get through a glitch that stops you from going into the last tower(s).
In my case I got the hard lock glitch and had no remaining interactions, so [shrug emoji]. Alls I know is that I tried for hours to get around it and had to give up.
Yeah I saw the glitch warnings, thanks! Someone on GameFAQs suggested it might be the opposite, where if you have a whole bunch of interactions left, the game crashes because it has all those stored. We'll see I guess, first I even need to get there - spent nearly three hours today on the sixth Tower, so it's a while off still.
I had imported Pandora's Tower before it released in North America, and wonder if I should just play that version instead of the local one. Apparently it didn't have the same problesm.
Spider-Man (PS4)
This game is incredible. Definitely the best Spider-Man game ever made.
Spider-Man (PS4)
This game is incredible. Definitely the best Spider-Man game ever made.
I'm still quite partial to Shattered Dimensions, just due to the variety of characters; styles; & locations. Still, I started playing this game after work, and I look up now and it's 1:30 AM so it must be doing something right. It's a very good game, but it's definitely full of the usual Ubisoft Open World issues (a map full of icons, radio towers to unlock said icons on the map) and Spider-Man game issues (repeating audio, repetitive side content). Still, you can't beat the sheer amount of polish Insomniac put into it.
Spider-Man (PS4)
This game is incredible. Definitely the best Spider-Man game ever made.
I'm still quite partial to Shattered Dimensions, just due to the variety of characters; styles; & locations. Still, I started playing this game after work, and I look up now and it's 1:30 AM so it must be doing something right. It's a very good game, but it's definitely full of the usual Ubisoft Open World issues (a map full of icons, radio towers to unlock said icons on the map) and Spider-Man game issues (repeating audio, repetitive side content). Still, you can't beat the sheer amount of polish Insomniac put into it.
How does it FEEL to explore NYC as Spider-Man in the game? That's always been my biggest hangup in the more recent games. I try not to idolize Spider-Man 2's swinging, but there was a momentum and speed coupled with some of the upgrades in that game that made the experience of just traveling through the city joyous.
In the middle of Super Mario 3D Land (3DS), and rather enjoying the game.Super Mario 3D Land came out two years before Super Mario 3D World. The cues go the other way around. I like 3D Land, but I think in general the levels are way too short. Most of them take less than a minute or so to finish even on your first play through.
Straight up, it's not as good as Super Mario 3D World on Wii U even though it takes a lot of cues from that game.
In the middle of Super Mario 3D Land (3DS), and rather enjoying the game.Super Mario 3D Land came out two years before Super Mario 3D World. The cues go the other way around. I like 3D Land, but I think in general the levels are way too short. Most of them take less than a minute or so to finish even on your first play through.
Straight up, it's not as good as Super Mario 3D World on Wii U even though it takes a lot of cues from that game.
In the middle of Super Mario 3D Land (3DS), and rather enjoying the game.Super Mario 3D Land came out two years before Super Mario 3D World. The cues go the other way around. I like 3D Land, but I think in general the levels are way too short. Most of them take less than a minute or so to finish even on your first play through.
Straight up, it's not as good as Super Mario 3D World on Wii U even though it takes a lot of cues from that game.
Oh wow, I totally had that wrong... For some reason, I was imagining that Super Mario 3D World came first!
Thanks for correcting me.
Agree that levels are super short, but was ok with that because of the portable form factor. Start a new level, and you know it'll be over in a couple of minutes (literally) regardless of whether you win or lose.
And I do think it takes longer, most of the time, if you want to get all coins and the flag your first time through because there is a bit less room for error...
Sure, it artificially locks Link from getting there either with that canyon to the north and northwest, and the “You can’t go any farther” message.I always felt there should have been more to that message, as a way of explaining why you can't go that way. Something like "You can't leave Hyrule, get back in there and save Zelda you coward!"
I think the ability to take P4 Golden (and, Naga willing, P5 Crimson) portable will make them a bit more playable. But I tried to play Person 3 Portable after blasting through P5 and came to a stop in about August with 130 hours between them. So yeah, hold off for a bit.
Unfortunately, I decided to pick up Revelations 1 PS4 after that, and god...every time I come back to this game, I think "this time, I'm actually going to see what people like about it", and every time that never happensFor me, the appeal of “Resident Evil: Revelations” was directly tied to 3DS. The game looked amazing on a handheld in 2012. If you didn’t play it back then, much of the wow-factor is lost. When I bought the Wii U port, and the game’s warts were far more apparent. It was easier to see how much Capcom hid behind a 240p screen so the graphics were far less impressive on an HD console. The HD ports did have dual stick controls though the Circle Pad Pro helped immensely on 3DS.
Also, "Terragrigia" is still the stupidest name I've ever seen in the history of fiction.I’m almost with you on this except “The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks” had spirits named “Lokomo” and almost every character in the game was a train-related pun.
Finished my replay of Resident Evil 4 on PS4. Man...that game does not hold up as well as I had hoped. I had forgotten that everything about The Island (outside the Regenerators) is just "the worst", and it alone must push the game's run time at least 3-4 hours. It's bad enough that the game tosses in armored soldiers, which have always been the worst part of modern Resident Evil games, but it's also where the game decides to just throw in every leftover idea in an already schizophrenic game.
There are some vocal supporters of this game on the forums here, so hopefully I'll find something that appeals to me as it progresses. So far I've been mostly disappointed and am left feeling like it's a style-over-substance affair.
:(
Your description of Severed as a first-person dungeon crawler is quite apt - between the maze-like level design (although never really a maze since you've got a visible map), the simple environmental puzzles, and the set-piece battles spread out through the levels. Again, this game reminds me pretty strongly of Killer7 because of the similar gameplay elements and highly stylized graphics - have you tried that game by any chance?
... What I do like about the set-piece battles is they constrain the amount of giblets in the game; if you don't pick them up often you'll be forced to make some choices in the upgrade skill tree. ...
On 3DS you can set the action to display on both screens so you get the 3D effect off the top screen.Your description of Severed as a first-person dungeon crawler is quite apt - between the maze-like level design (although never really a maze since you've got a visible map), the simple environmental puzzles, and the set-piece battles spread out through the levels. Again, this game reminds me pretty strongly of Killer7 because of the similar gameplay elements and highly stylized graphics - have you tried that game by any chance?
I suppose on Wii U you could disable the map screen or just turn the TV off entirely,
...
On 3DS you can set the action to display on both screens so you get the 3D effect off the top screen.
There is a melee execution move but it is a mystery as to how to invoke it. I just bash them like normal 95% of the time I try. The execute vigour/pack didn't help.
it's a decent enough game and the openness is a nice change from the tiny spaces of the 1st/2nd. There are some town areas where you can break into shops extra for goodies/objective which are quite fun but does Nar Shaddaa sniper syndrome.
It's a decent enough game with better controls but I don't feel remotely compelled to play it again.
There is a melee execution move but it is a mystery as to how to invoke it. I just bash them like normal 95% of the time I try. The execute vigour/pack didn't help.
it's a decent enough game and the openness is a nice change from the tiny spaces of the 1st/2nd. There are some town areas where you can break into shops extra for goodies/objective which are quite fun but does Nar Shaddaa sniper syndrome.
It's a decent enough game with better controls but I don't feel remotely compelled to play it again.
Yeah, I can't execute it consistently, but it seems like it happens often enough if I tap the key again shortly after the first time.
I'll play through it for the same reason I did the first - to see what the "twist" is in the game, and to enjoy the world built in it.
I might see what the controller button layout is and give it a go, I'm finding I don't care for the button layout or having to do kb+m on it, and the quick movement is causing some strange unsettling of my stomach while I play.
There is a melee execution move but it is a mystery as to how to invoke it. I just bash them like normal 95% of the time I try. The execute vigour/pack didn't help.
it's a decent enough game and the openness is a nice change from the tiny spaces of the 1st/2nd. There are some town areas where you can break into shops extra for goodies/objective which are quite fun but does Nar Shaddaa sniper syndrome.
It's a decent enough game with better controls but I don't feel remotely compelled to play it again.
Yeah, I can't execute it consistently, but it seems like it happens often enough if I tap the key again shortly after the first time.
I'll play through it for the same reason I did the first - to see what the "twist" is in the game, and to enjoy the world built in it.
I might see what the controller button layout is and give it a go, I'm finding I don't care for the button layout or having to do kb+m on it, and the quick movement is causing some strange unsettling of my stomach while I play.
Don't bank on that twist saving the game for you. It's really stupid and doesn't really make sense, much like the plot in general.
Every once in a while I decide to dip into my insurmountable backlog and grab something seemingly at random, and a few days ago that thing was SteamWorld Heist. Not at random, really, since I remembered it being very well received at the time, and that was truer than I thought when I saw NWR gave it three separate 9.5s from three different reviewers on the various Nintendo platforms it was released on. And after playing it, I can definitely see why. I'd always seen it described as turn-based strategy, which it is, but in a really fresh, interesting way. The very small scale with just a few characters makes it feel like nothing else I've ever played, and I've been really addicted to it the last few days.
Every once in a while I decide to dip into my insurmountable backlog and grab something seemingly at random, and a few days ago that thing was SteamWorld Heist. Not at random, really, since I remembered it being very well received at the time, and that was truer than I thought when I saw NWR gave it three separate 9.5s from three different reviewers on the various Nintendo platforms it was released on. And after playing it, I can definitely see why. I'd always seen it described as turn-based strategy, which it is, but in a really fresh, interesting way. The very small scale with just a few characters makes it feel like nothing else I've ever played, and I've been really addicted to it the last few days.
Yeah Heist is a really solid game! I think 9.5/10 scores are a bit too generous, personally, but it's definitely very good. Who's currently on your team? I found myself sticking to a proven formation fairly early on and not swapping in new members often. Bit of a bummer because the last character you get, for example, has a really different playstyle, but by that time he'll be rather outclassed by the higher leveled/better equipped rest of your team.
I remember liking Spyro 3 at the time, mainly the skateboarding mini-game in the first world really. But yeah you're completely right, it gets really bogged down with all the side characters and semi-mandatory mini-games. You can't even rush through the game since every now and then you'll need to get X amount of dragon eggs to continue to the next world.
It's one of those games I wish I never went back to when I did, really soured my opinion on it retrospectively haha.
Slay The Spire:
(https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/004/205/958/large/bruce-brenneise-promo-final.jpg?1481316483)
Such a smart game.
The design of deck building coupled to roguelike progression.
Balance curve that unlocks cards as you go introducing the player to interactions and synergies in natural manner.
Hundreds of incredibly ingenious mechanics with stacking relics, events, cards, card draw and discard piles, orbs.
Enemies' attacks are telegraphed in advance and you can gain a control over what you draw each turn so inherent RNG gets tamed but still provides fun variance.
Not taking cards, or outright removing cards from the deck is another great way to ensure you get specific cards more often -- for example the more basic Strike cards you throw away the more often other attack cards you will pick up along the way will crop up -- and ALL of them are stronger that just basic Strike card in one way or another.
Just amazing.
I've been watching this game on streams for several months now and was just waiting for a sale. -20% discount last week was basically an excuse for me to actually buy the game for myself and start playing.
Already put 20 hours into it and it feels i barely even started -- i was mostly playing just one character (Ironclad, 1 out of 3). Mostly just figuring things out. There are still other two characters, dailies, ascension mode, the real ending and achievements...
I sputtered out partway through on Crash 1 of the remake trilogy, just eventually got way too punishing to enjoy even playing alone. It sounds like I might get back to enjoying it if I just skip the remainder of 1 altogether and move on to 2.
Shovel Knight (Wii U)
Actually playing it via Cemu on my arcade cabinet. ...
I found LocoRoco incredibly dissapointing. It's bright, colourful, and the music is appropriate... But the gameplay feels like an unpolished, extremely turgid attempt at Sonic the Hedgehog or something. Jump is never quite as springy as you need it to be either, and even the whole build-your-own-house stuff outside the main game is uninspired at best.
No idea how it routinely scored 8/10 and higher and why it's still prevalent on 'best of PSP' lists. Although I gotta admit most of the PSP stuff I played has been a bit underwhelming, so maybe it's just me.
I'm not really sure if I wasted my day-off playing Tetris 99 the whole day and the best place I got is only Top 4.
Does anyone know if the Oddworld series of games has held up well, or if they are better forgotten? The recent(ish) revival of the series has me curious.
... Abe's Oddysee was remade into Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty! in 2016; it has a Wii U release for sure, don't think it's on Switch (yet). ...
But here's a caveat: I played the game on release and got whatever the "true" ending was at that time. I remember thinking that the game is already huge and extremely well-designed, and did not need a bunch of DLC jammed in willy nilly. But it sounds like that's exactly what happened with that boss gauntlet nonsense. Interesting in terms of preservation. Can you even opt in to a DLC-less release on any platform?
I believe they fucked Toki Tori 2 up as well and you can't get the OG version anymore.
The first few "board games on DS" carts have arrived, so I've been wasting the evening with Catan and Carcassonne on my handheld.
[snip]
However, overall I'm thrilled with the purchase of both games! They both play well and will see a lot of love at our house between me and the kids.
Hmm... not sure what to say about Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS).
It's a great game from a technical standpoint, but I don't really like the small, distinct areas that you explore and jump between. This structure reminds my of Portrait of Ruin in some ways, and wasn't something I enjoyed in that game either.
Difficulty seems relative high, which I'm ok most of the time. But sometimes I hitting a tough spot and wonder if my approach to the game is wrong. Am I supposed to go out and grind instead of consistently pushing forward? Did I miss one (or more) glyphs that I'm supposed to have for this point of the game? Right now there is a boss that I'm dying at... checking online said he was "easy" but the recommended strategies were all things that aren't even possible for my character, so maybe I'm not supposed to be in this area yet? It's not really clear...
I like the game and enjoy playing, but so far it's not my favorite Castlevania.
Yeah, I've said before, it was time to retire the SOTN clone approach, but the Portrait of Ruin style is weirdly unsatisfying. I don't get the raves for Ecclesia, particularly. A good chunk of the game is mirrored content.Do you mean for Castlevania or in general? At that time, yeah, I can get behind that. Now though? It’s been so long since I’ve played one that I really want a Symphony of the Night-style game which is convenient because Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is due this summer.
...
If anyone wants a challenge in Order of Ecclesia, try defeating the bosses without taking damage. You get an unequipable medal for bragging rights. I’m never doing that again.
Has anyone played Big Bang Mini (DS)? ...
Started playing Mega Man 10 (WiiWare).
When this first came out, I was kind of disappointed as some of the sport-themed levels felt pretty weird, and it just didn't leave a strong first impression like Mega Man 9 did. However, this time playing through it's felt pretty good. (Granted, I started with some of the more "normal" enemies: Pump Man, Solar Man, and Chill Man.)
Even "not as good" Mega Man games are usually pretty decent, so I'm having fun. Not sure how long it will last, but as this is essentially my first time through it's nice to see some interesting surprises so far.
Personally, I think that's what makes Mega Man 10 more interesting, it got pretty creative with its themes and ideas. One of the better games in the series, I feel.
Well, that puts a damper on my Final Fantasy plans. I've found that I am less and less fond of side quests in games outside of Zelda (because those are just so fun and bizarre), so these sound less appealing to me now. I just seem to prefer getting to the point in story-driven games sooner as opposed to derping around a big empty world doing meaningless side stuff.
Got my Kickstarter backer copy of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Moon in today.
Guys...yeah, this game's the real deal, especially if you like Aria of Sorrow-style Igavania. All that extra time in development and Wayforward's additional expertise seems to have really paid off. I think you guys are going to like this one. :D
Got my Kickstarter backer copy of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Moon in today.
Guys...yeah, this game's the real deal, especially if you like Aria of Sorrow-style Igavania. All that extra time in development and Wayforward's additional expertise seems to have really paid off. I think you guys are going to like this one. :D
But are overall impressions still good, despite losing progress with the patch? (Whispers I've heard all sound positive, but I haven't sought out any reviews yet.)
Got my Kickstarter backer copy of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Moon in today.
Guys...yeah, this game's the real deal, especially if you like Aria of Sorrow-style Igavania. All that extra time in development and Wayforward's additional expertise seems to have really paid off. I think you guys are going to like this one. :D
...
Just started playing Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes (DS).
...
I'm playing OlliOlli, the first one from 2014 or '15. ...
I've been tempted top pick up Angry Birds Star Wars for when I spend time with my nephew, since the price has dropped pretty darn low. What are your thoughts on it as a game to play with younger kids?
I have Rodea also but I never got around to trying it. I've heard about the last boss issues which is one of the reasons I haven't wanted to try it, as I like to complete games and this one sounds like a real pain to do so, or else I'd just have to leave it unfinished which is probably what I would do.
Have you played the Wii U version or plan to play it? Would be interesting to see how you think it compares.
The Fall: Part 2: Unbound (PC):
I very much enjoyed the first part on WiiU for what it was worth, but was surprised to find it end so abruptly (the ability menu has several blank spots still at that point).
That’s interesting timing. I’m in the mood for a Metroid-like game right now, and I’ve been trying to decide whether I should go with that game, Guacamelee, or one of Bloodstained or Axiom Verge. I already own all three of them (in some cases multiple times) but I’ve barely put any time into any of them. What would you recommend?
Considering the game is only about 7 hours long according to How Long To Beat, I figure it's a pretty easy recommendation. The game definitely gets better as you become more skilled and unlock more moves, but you'll know early on whether the style and humor will appeal to you.
Also listening along for the Axiom Verge / Guacamelee opinions. Have both, have started neither.The Fall: Part 2: Unbound (PC):
I very much enjoyed the first part on WiiU for what it was worth, but was surprised to find it end so abruptly (the ability menu has several blank spots still at that point).
I never got into this series, because I always confused The Fall and The Swapper for some reason. Very similar art styles I guess. Would you still recommend the first one, knowing that part 2 isn't very good?
... Guacamelee ... the true ending. I'd heavily recommend doing that since some of the best platforming challenges in the game are in these optional area's. Plus going for the true ending makes it more like a metriodvania since you have to do a bit of exploring to find these places.
I’ve been playing Guacamelee too because of the recommendations here and while I’m still pretty early, I’m liking it quite a bit.
... and even on the DS, I really am finally going to play Chrono Trigger for the first time ...
Started playing The Kore Gang (Wii), and got to stage 9 before calling it a night. This is a weird little Wii platformer that feels released in 2010... but reportedly started development a decade earlier than that. That age shows in the design, but it's still perfectly playable.
... The Kore Gang (Wii), ...
Is this based on a license or something? Never heard of it. It does seem very reminiscent of Mushroom Men, Psychonauts and the like.
I tried a few times to go back to MadWorld and recently considered trying again since PlatinumGames has been in the news with The Wonderful 101 port.
How long did it take you to get through the game?
**For what it's worth, The Swindle is one of my favorite roguelikes on Wii U - but that game had serious crashing issues in later levels that made it almost unplayable.
**For what it's worth, The Swindle is one of my favorite roguelikes on Wii U - but that game had serious crashing issues in later levels that made it almost unplayable.
Swindle is a great game. The port was super shoddy though, crashes, bugs, interminable slowdown. Super addictive loop. I'll put Tallowmere on the list based on that comparison, although I gotta agree it looks hideous.
I think Adrock is going to be very happy with how they updated JillI’m surprised by this comment. I feel as if I’ve been extremely subtle with my Jill fandom.
I can't remember the last time an RE game actually allowed a main character to be anything less than superhuman.No idea what you’re talking about.
Thumper:
This is my first experience of the game, and it's really grabbed me. Reminds me of Rez on the PS2. I ended up playing an hour without noticing it. Very fun, great DMT-trip presentation, but even as someone who 100%ed the first two Bit Trip Runner games, it's hard as hell. This is not aided by the noticeable Stadia input lag. It doesn't matter at all in something like Gylt, but here it definitely feels like the timing is off, and I'm basically learning to play it "wrong" to account for it.
I am actually very interested in Stadia and basically all other similar game streaming platforms.
My interest is a bit more from technological point of view, because i just think that the concept is just so cool and has many interesting upsides. And it's own unique downsides too -- but these are very interesting to me as well.
Seeing how Stadia is likely not to launch in my country until 2030 (if ever), i am more hopeful about trying out Microsoft's streaming platform. Me having a library of games on Xbox helps, and one can stream from their own Xboxes to say PC in my workplace without having to wait until Microsoft deploys their servers.Thumper:
This is my first experience of the game, and it's really grabbed me. Reminds me of Rez on the PS2. I ended up playing an hour without noticing it. Very fun, great DMT-trip presentation, but even as someone who 100%ed the first two Bit Trip Runner games, it's hard as hell. This is not aided by the noticeable Stadia input lag. It doesn't matter at all in something like Gylt, but here it definitely feels like the timing is off, and I'm basically learning to play it "wrong" to account for it.
AFAIK Stadia version of Thumper has massively relaxed timings compared to regular versions.
Azeke, do you have any ability to do a Stadia trial through VPN, or is that a no-go with the distances involved in any case?My interest in streaming platforms in almost entirely academic and from technology geek standpoint. I aint jumping through hoops just to try it out.
Have you played the Wii U version or plan to play it? Would be interesting to see how you think it compares.
Haven't played it (yet), but might give it a shot. From what I can tell, the 3DS/Wii U versions include some loot-esque stuff, semi-permanent item upgrades which are more temporaneous in the Wii version, and the colours seem a bit more washed out too.
That said, if the levels are largely similar, I don't really care enough to go through the same game twice. Getting the impression the Wii version is probably the better one; at least, Yuji Naka appears to think so.
(https://twitter.com/nakayuji/status/663935285722374144)
Which brings me to some happier news: I've started digging into Xenoblade Chronicles 3D (3DS) again and am just constantly reminded of how much I love this game. Playing on 3DS isn't the best way to go about it in my opinion - but being able to play the game on a portable system at all is amazing.
Thanks to Khush for brining it back to mind with recent posts here: http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=28408.700
Resident Evil 4 (PS4)
Hot take: Resident Evil 4 with traditional controls does not hold up.
-Crystalis (NES): Haven't gone too far, but this seems like a promising late-era Zelda-like.I literally just bought Crystalis on Gameboy Color about a week ago. I keep forgetting about Nintendo Switch Online.
I never liked the Wii version of the game either, just preferenceI presume you mean strictly motion controls because I believe you can use the Gamecube controller as long as you have the best Wii model with the GCN controller ports. I don't think you can use the GameCube adapter on Wii U if you attempt to play Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition via backwards compatibility because nothing is good in this world and the gods have abandoned us.
-Crystalis (NES): Haven't gone too far, but this seems like a promising late-era Zelda-like.I literally just bought Crystalis on Gameboy Color about a week ago. I keep forgetting about Nintendo Switch Online.
It's fine. I'm trying to bolster my Nintendo handheld library (I'll get into that in another thread). Crystalis only cost me like $25. There was this weird brown funk on it that I had to clean off so I guess I paid in other ways.
I watched some comparison videos between the NES and GBC versions, and it seems like the ultimate version of the game would be somewhere between the two. The viewing area and music are better on NES; the translation is better on GBC. Nintendo Software Technology handled the GBC port, and in hindsight, what it did to Crystalis'seses overworld music was the first hint NST would eventually be relegated to the low-budget Mario vs. Donkey Kong factory. This is a shame because I still think Nintendo needs a stronger development foothold in North America beyond Retro Studios and more recently, Next Level Games.I never liked the Wii version of the game either, just preferenceI presume you mean strictly motion controls because I believe you can use the Gamecube controller as long as you have the best Wii model with the GCN controller ports. I don't think you can use the GameCube adapter on Wii U if you attempt to play Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition via backwards compatibility because nothing is good in this world and the gods have abandoned us.
Still, the Wii Version is still the definitive version of this game for me because it's the Gamecube version with the PS2 extras and all the controller options. If the Switch ports was just an HD Wii Version, I don't think I would have cared about the even higher resolution and frame rate on PS4.
What games do you recommend for a beginer who has never played anything? :-\
Sackboy: A Big Adventure (why isn't it just called "Sackboy's Big Adventure?")
Sackboy: A Big Adventure (why isn't it just called "Sackboy's Big Adventure?")
or "Little Big Planet 4"?
So at this point you've played most PS5 exclusives right? Anything you're currently looking forward to on the platform?
If I had one I'd probably be excited most for Returnal, I wish HouseMarque were still a multi-platform developer but they seem pretty firmly in Sony's camp at this point. Not sure what else is out soon though, Ratchet and Clank in June and then DeathLoop in September?
What games do you recommend for a beginer who has never played anything? :-\
I recommend playing all the NES games you can then. With the NES, the videogame industry was still in its infancy so a lot of games are quite simple and controllers didn't have the amount of buttons that they do now. Since the games are simple they are quite easy so you should have a great time playing them, Mr. Spambot. A few good choices to start would be Metroid, Zelda II, and Ninja Gaiden. Happy gaming.
What games do you recommend for a beginer who has never played anything? :-\
I recommend playing all the NES games you can then. With the NES, the videogame industry was still in its infancy so a lot of games are quite simple and controllers didn't have the amount of buttons that they do now. Since the games are simple they are quite easy so you should have a great time playing them, Mr. Spambot. A few good choices to start would be Metroid, Zelda II, and Ninja Gaiden. Happy gaming.
Great tip! Thank you very much! I am a beginner as well and appreciate the explanation a lot!
As happened with Stardew Valley in the last game, the current Mafia game got me to play Pikmin 3 Deluxe, where I started a new file, this time playing on hard mode. I just adore this game. The Pikmin series has always been one of my favorites, I went as far as to import New Play Control Pikmin 2 from Europe back in the day, and Pikmin 3 is just the perfect synthesis of the best ideas of the first two games. I'm so happy this game got a second chance on Switch, and I hope more people got to experience its greatness. It seems like it did reasonably well, so here's hoping Nintendo goes back to the series and gives us Pikmin 4.
As happened with Stardew Valley in the last game, the current Mafia game got me to play Pikmin 3 Deluxe, where I started a new file, this time playing on hard mode. I just adore this game. The Pikmin series has always been one of my favorites, I went as far as to import New Play Control Pikmin 2 from Europe back in the day, and Pikmin 3 is just the perfect synthesis of the best ideas of the first two games. I'm so happy this game got a second chance on Switch, and I hope more people got to experience its greatness. It seems like it did reasonably well, so here's hoping Nintendo goes back to the series and gives us Pikmin 4.
I think Pikmin 3 gets very close to fully nailing it, but doesn't quiiiite get there. The fruit collection is ultimately too easy to put real pressure on (and the fruit are not nearly as satisfying to collect as the human flotsam from the previous games). The sequence that pulls the rug out for a bit is very memorable as a result.
Like, each game is a 9/10 in its own right, but it always feels like it's just shy of true greatness. Someday P4 will come and become the rapture.
Loop Hero quickly captured me, and i'm chewing through it quickly.
I recently had the pleasure of playing "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition" and it was an absolute thrill from start to finish. The game follows the story of Geralt of Rivia, a legendary monster hunter known as a Witcher. As Geralt, players are tasked with uncovering the mystery behind a dark force known as the Wild Hunt, all while navigating political intrigue, complex relationships, and dangerous monsters. With stunning graphics and detailed character development, "The Witcher 3" offers a thrilling and engaging gameplay experience. The game is filled with memorable characters, including Geralt's companions such as the sorceress Yennefer and the bard Dandelion. Each side quest is carefully crafted with its own unique narrative, providing hours upon hours of gameplay. The characters and their stories were the true gems of the game, as every interaction felt like a meaningful encounter that would have a lasting effect on the world around me. The voice acting was top-notch and every character felt like a real person with their own motivations and agendas. I especially enjoyed the game's combat system, which was both challenging and satisfying. Fights against stronger enemies required careful planning and strategy, but the feeling of triumph after taking down a powerful foe was incredibly rewarding.