Topic: What are you playing?

[Stratos]

Oohhboy, what alternative voxel games from Minecraft do you recommend?

[Mop it up]

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.

[Stratos]

I think I own Terraria on Wii U already. A little disillusioned that it doesn't have pointer controls. Hoping that we can see more games on the Switch with pointer controls, as it is the closest thing to a mouse on a console.

[BranDonk Kong]

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Rocksmith 2014 (PC).

[ClexYoshi]

I personally prefer Starbound for it's myriad ease of fast travel options, it's colorful Lore, and the fact that it's primary terrain destruction/resource collection tool is both long range and doesn't have durability tied to it. really, nothing in the game has durability tied to it. the only survival-y thing that's in the game is the hunger meter if you choose a higher difficulty.

[Soren]

Started playing Dirt 4 last night and I must say it already feels like an improvement over last year's Dirt Rally. The wrapping around career mode feels way more fleshed out and I think it's probably the best one since Dirt 2. The driving feels very nice and I think the procedurally generated rally courses might be the best thing that ever happens to the series.

[ejamer]

I've been playing Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS) lately and enjoying it a great deal. This is no surprise as I sunk far too many hours into the original GBA Advance Wars.


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. The art style is a fine change, but I think the main interface is a bit of a drag compared to the previous game.

[Mop it up]

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.

While I do like some of the refinements the game made to the gameplay, overall, it's probably my least fave in the series. I'm just not a fan of bleak art styles and settings, and the game feels somewhat devoid of content after the stuffed and awesome Dual Strike (though to be fair, the online features are gone so that part of the game's value is lost).

[oohhboy]

I like DOR's gameplay the best but as said before it is lacking post game content.

One of the best changes is how aircraft carriers work. Instead of launching and having to wait a turn the aircraft become an extension of the carrier allowing the plane to attack on the same turn it launches. The carrier itself loses all weapons but it's utility goes through the roof and makes you feel like your running well oiled air group.

In addition to is is the "Sea plane" that is built on the carrier and there is only material for 2 per carrier. It looks like an a - 10 and it can attack anything at the price of not being excellent damage of it's specialised counter parts and really low fuel amount, expense and limited numbers.

It makes carriers and it's attendant aircraft plus escorts the most expensive thing in the game. But when you have it you get to roll that combine arms machine more powerful than any CO power.

BB's also got buffed by allowing it to shoot after moving is another favourite.

Never really used the anti-tank much I almost always fought an offensive war and if I needed to block I would just use faster more flexible tanks that I know will be useful again on the offensive.

[Plugabugz]

I bought Danger Zone, which is essentially Burnout's Crash Mode made by the founders (and some ex-developers) of Criterion Games. I'm having far too much fun with it.

[Stratos]

Does it have a 1980's Fighter Jet themed soundtrack?

[ejamer]

...
One of the best changes is how aircraft carriers work.
...

Just started using sea units and got a rude awakening about how much more effective they are.
I like it.

[oohhboy]

The navy in DOR is fleshed out unlike the previously where they were tacked on.

It was silly that the best thing to use on a cruiser was another cruiser as that was the one thing that could catch it and not get mauled in the counter attack.

Bloody Dusters are such a pain as the AI really likes them as they are affordable. I use them once in a while as air defence against choppers and to finish off infantry I bypass but the AI uses them to do just enough damage to soft targets for you to consider them offensive combat ineffective.

[oohhboy]

Brought Strafe and had a few hours with it. Nearly beat it. It has had a couple patches so my experience is somewhat better than a lot of the other reviews have of which many were to the point of being vindictive.

It is honestly a pretty damn solid game. The shooting sounds could do with a little bit more bass but are otherwise intentionally unintrusive as this is the one thing you will be hearing the entire run so I see it as a positive.

The shooting itself is pretty good. The shotgun satisfyingly throws corpses back. Explosions just throw bit everywhere. The railgun really lets you break the game early on but loses it's utility late game if you don't get in head shots. The machine gun starts fairly weak but once upgraded is a beast that can take on all targets.

I wouldn't mind seeing more mods for the guns and more items to buy. There are a bunch of nit picks but the devs are very active looking into every aspect of the game with an eye for improvement beyond bug hunting.

For me it doesn't deserve getting a mixed review rating on Steam. It's a good game but it looks like the players put the marketing before the game.

[broodwars]

Been playing a lot of Injustice 2, and overall I like it a lot better than the 1st game. Outside of Brainiac being a cheap, cheating mother****er, I think the story mode is Mich better this time, there's way more SP content this time, & the character designs & overall personality seem to be dramatically improved over the 1st game.

Also nearly done with Tokyo Mirage Sessions, & oh boy does that game just Turbo off a cliff after CH. 4. Repetitive, boring, & just filled to the brim with padding. What could have been an excellent 30 hour game becomes a mediocre 60 hour game.

[ejamer]

Business trip meant some time on my PSP Go while travelling - although I spent far more time reading books than playing games.  When I did play, it was Metal Slug X (PS One Classic).


Fun game, tons of character. I never know quite what to think about playing challenging arcade experiences on the go like this though... With unlimited continues, the risk of death is lost and so the whole nature of the game is changed. You can challenge yourself to reduce the continues used, or restart after a certain number of deaths, but it still doesn't feel as intense.


That said, still totally recommend pretty much anything in the Metal Slug series. Very nicely made games!

[lolmonade]

Ori and the Blind Forest's gameplay isn't unique (It's good, just not unique)- It's a 2D "metroid-vania" in that you explore a map, defeat enemies, and unlock abilities that then create ways for you to open new paths and progress further.  What makes this game special is its detailed and beautiful animation/art style, its wonderful music giving the game a perfect tone, and just the right amount of narrative to make you want to progress further to see what happened in this world.


Strongly recommend for anyone here who hasn't picked this game up yet.

[Phil]

I'll just list with a thought or two for each:

ARMS - Been playing this a lot for review for today. I managed to beat Round 4 of the Grand Prix without needing to rematch! Thankfully Skillshot didn't pop up. I suck at that mode!

Ever Oasis - It starts out really slow as it needs to teach a lot of systems to the player, but when you're let loose with more freedom, it builds up to a fun and engaging pace.

Oceanhorn - I'm playing this for the third time -- the first on iOS, the second on PS4 with a Platinum, and now Switch. This is a review build, and I'm enjoying it like I did with the PS4 version. The portability really rules!

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?

[Order.RSS]

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?

Yeah the DLC comes in 2 packs but you can't get either separately, so you need to buy a Season Pass for 20 bucks I believe. I'm kinda curious to see how well they will do with those, only one of the two contains actual story stuff, so I imagine most people would hold out for that (if they need more Zelda this year at all).

[BranDonk Kong]

Breath of the Wild.

[broodwars]

Playing Crash Bandicoot 1 for the first time via the PS4 remaster/remake collection, and it's...interesting, and often infuriating, but not bad. I actually see a lot of influence from the original Donkey Kong Country, & the remastering is quite lovely.

I'm about halfway through, and so far I'm enjoying it, although certain stages (I.e. "Path to Nowhere") can **** off with their completely B.S. level design.

Also tried out Half-Gone Heroes (GS has the non-Switch versions on sale for $9.99). It took me some time to get used to the interface & the controls, but once I did it really clicked with me.

[azeke]

I also actually played some of the first Crash game (original PS1 game).

It feels very barren and derivative, it's a textbook edgy mascot platformer (with even more primitive moveset than even DKC1 that it directly copies) and the only new things level to level are just new camera gimmick that they throwing at the player, figuratively and literally.

Movement and jumping also feel amateurish, a notch worse than in Rare's games -- which already in my opinion wasn't good enough.

[ejamer]

I tried playing some Crash games recently, and concluded they must be one of those things you got into "at the time".  Now they feel like bad precursors to simple 3D runner games, which are pretty much garbage in my opinion. (Of course, those games are popular enough now that maybe my opinion just isn't worth much.)

[broodwars]

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.

[lolmonade]

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.

Sounds like the perfect kind of game to rent.  The first console I bought with my own money was the Playstation 1, but I never got around to trying it.  I checked my local rental store on release day, but someone had already borrowed the copy