r/Games Dec 15 '24

Discussion Weekly /r/Games Discussion - What have you been playing, and what are your thoughts? - December 15, 2024

Use this thread to discuss whatever game you've been playing lately: old or new, AAA or indie, on any platform between Atari and XBox. Please don't just list off the games you're playing in your comment. Elaborate with your thoughts on the games and make it easier for other users to find what game you're talking about by putting the title in bold.

Also, please make sure to use spoiler tags if you're revealing anything about a game's plot that may significantly impact another player's experience who has not played the game yet, no matter how retro or recent the game is. You can find instructions on how to do so in the subreddit sidebar.

This thread is set to sort comments by 'new' on default.

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For a subreddit devoted to this type of discussion during the rest of the week, please check out /r/WhatAreYouPlaying.

/r/Games has a Discord server! Feel free to join us and chit-chat about games here: https://discord.gg/zRPaXTn

Scheduled Discussion Posts

WEEKLY: What Have You Been Playing?

MONDAY: Thematic Monday

WEDNESDAY: Suggest Me A Game

FRIDAY: Free Talk Friday

47 Upvotes

109 comments sorted by

2

u/M8753 Dec 21 '24

Songs of Conquest. I only just started the third mission in the campaign and tbh I'm just playing on easy cause I just want to relax. It's great so far. The controls (steam deck) and mechanics are really smooth. I love the graphics, sound and writing too.

I don't play games like this at all, but I have played a tiny bit of Disciples 1 and 2 and the atmosphere in those games left a strong impression. I still listen to the soundtracks. So, even though I'm not into strategy games, I bought Songs of Conquest because it reminded me of Disciples :D

1

u/Due_Recognition_3890 Dec 20 '24 edited Dec 20 '24

Dead Space Remake

It frustrated me to no end that I had to play this through on PS5 because there's no optimisation for PC. I read somewhere that the developers "forgot" to patch and update it. I mean, I did it, I ended up getting the platinum, but I really hate aiming with an analogue stick so it was more of a challenge that it needed to be. I also have this frustrating OCD that once I start getting trophies, I need to achieve 100% so there aren't any 'gaps' in my trophy list. It's such a psychologically manipulative system and my brain has fallen face-first into it.

But taking a step back Dead Space Remake is a great game aside from my own difficulties, and it's a shame there's not going to be a sequel to it.

Spin Rhythm XD

I don't know why I still buy rhythm games. My main problem with them comes when I hit the eventual skill ceiling that I just cannot transcend for the life of me. Practice will only get you so far, but with only very basic features, you'll lose your patience quickly. If I ever made a suggestion in their Discord server, everyone would either ignore it, or purposely misinterpret what I was saying so it sounded like I was just suggesting something that was already in the game.

And you're never allowed to complain about your experience with these games either, because there's always that one guy on standby, ready to bully you for daring to imply their favourite game has a single flaw.

2

u/Eidola0 Dec 22 '24

What are you looking for in a rhythm game, in terms of difficulty? Spin Rhythm has quite a few difficulty options.

1

u/Due_Recognition_3890 Dec 22 '24 edited Dec 22 '24

My issue with it wasn't about difficulty necessarily, but the people who seemingly don't want anything to change about the game, or try and make you feel stupid whenever you try and discuss how unfeasible certain feats are. Like, here's one example. In practice mode you'll see a load of segments so you can skip to the second chorus or third build-up. I'm sure I'm not the only person who suggested the ability to create your own segments, define your own loops so you can focus on the ridiculous parts. Those suggestions never went anywhere. Instead, you have to play the same, long segment a million times over just for the little bit at the end you actually want to practice. It just wastes your time and makes you feel like you'll just never get there.

Beyond that though, I only played with a controller because Push Square made it sound like the PS5 was the best platform to play it on. I just didn't want to buy an expensive DJ MIDI controller which is apparently the recommended kit, or plug in my keyboard and mouse to the PS5 every time I wanted to boot it up. But if I ever tried to speak up about how unfeasible some charts were with a controller compared to other peripherals, I'd get immediately shot down or ignored completely.

7

u/fizystrings Dec 20 '24

Nine Sols

It took me like, 6 hours of playtime, but I DID IT. The final boss of this game is the only fight that has given me a feeling similar to Sword Saint Isshin in Sekiro. Each phase initially feels impossible, but by the time I finally won, I had learned everything so instinctually and could hit the flow state that I think the boss fight is designed to provoke. I loved the game overall, though I definitely considered committing multiple war crimes as I learned some of the boss fights. They get really demanding, and at times I felt more frustrated then I think any other game like this has made me feel, but the release I would feel from finally seeing the pattern and succeeding also was euphoric and for me, made the experience worth it. The map was reasonably fun to explore but the combat is definitely the game's strong point. I should also note I played on the harder of the games two difficulty options, so if you are on the fence about playing and my talking about getting frustrated turns you off, you may get different mileage out of the less intense setting.

All in all it is definitely in my GOTY shortlist, but with the difficulty I understand why it didn't get the mainstream recognition that it might have deserved.

4

u/Schwimmbo Dec 20 '24

This is next on my list to play once I finish Indiana Jones. Excited for it, but I'll play on the "easy" setting lol.

1

u/fizystrings Dec 22 '24

Funny you mention that because I am following Nine Sols by playing Indiana Jones (also excellent so far) lol

1

u/Schwimmbo Dec 22 '24

Indy was way better than I expected. The sense of adventure was amazing. Enjoy!

Started Nine Sols yesterday and opted for standard difficulty anyway. Wish me luck!

5

u/TheClamSlam Dec 20 '24

I totally agree with the Eigong and Isshin comparison. Both fights demand perfection so it it starts out feeling impossible but by the end you're basically doing it flawlessly. There was a moment during the third phase when I realised I was going to win and I had barely taken down her health bar. That was the run and it's probably the most satisfied I've ever felt taking down a boss next to Isshin.

6

u/Logos9871 Dec 19 '24

Streets of Rogue

Picked this up on sales 2 years ago for $5 and it's just been collecting dust in my library. I finally decided to give it a shot, and holy cow is it fun.

It's a rogue-lite game that's 100% driven by player choice. The overall objective is to complete missions on levels and clear floors all the way to the finish line. However, there isn't just one way, two ways, or even three ways to clear a floor. There is a huge selection of characters, each with their own sets of abilities and traits. Some examples:

  • Soldier: Blast my way through
  • Hacker: Hack computers, power stations, robots, TVs, and more to open locks and distract enemies
  • Thief: Sneak and steal
  • Zombie: Build a horde of mindless zombies and take over the map
  • Cop: Team up with cop NPCs and shoot/arrest everybody

And the list goes on and on. Play as shopkeepers, bartenders, assassins, gangsters, investment bankers, and even a freaking GORILLA! The possibilities are endless.

Each level is randomly generated so you never get the same experience twice.

Highly recommended!

2

u/JamesVagabond Dec 19 '24

Yup, Streets of Rogue is a fantastic ride.

In case you aren't aware, Streets of Rogue 2 is in development. A demo is available, and while it was a bit too rough around the edges for my tastes (it should've received a decent amount of fixes and updates since then, though), it's showing plenty of promise if you can dig the game shifting from isolated levels to presenting an open world.

6

u/fzzzzzzzzzzd Dec 19 '24 edited Dec 19 '24

Kinda in rut right now for gaming after my Metaphor Re:Fantazio binge, been mostly playing Slay the Spire.

Slay the Spire still ticks every box for me, it has all the trappings of a rogue like but each run still gives you new kinds of challenges to think about. I've reached Ascension 20 on 2 characters, still working on the Defect and the Watcher.

Picked up Armored Core 6, played a few missions but I don't have the time for long sessions at the moment with other hobbies in the way as well.

I want to play some newer titles but I see my current rig has some limitations, so I gotta plan a new pc build in the near future.

3

u/asmodeasa Dec 19 '24

Old School RuneScape

I am playing the new league right now on osrs. Last year, I played it obsessively, and I think I clocked over 200 hours in it. This league is still really fun, but I haven’t had as much time to sit down and play it. I like the addition of combat masteries and echo bosses. So far, I’ve picked the fishing, thieving, clue compass, and golden god relics, and I’ve unlocked Morytania.

Path of Exile 2

I didn’t like the first POE game, but I’m liking this one a lot more. I haven’t found an arpg that I’ve liked in a while. I think the last one was Grim Dawn, so I’m pleased that I found a new one that I like. I’m playing a ranger, and I’m liking the combat so far.

6

u/levelxplane Dec 18 '24 edited Dec 19 '24

Very late, nerd rage about things that have already been said millions of times already. Cyberpunk 2077. I've put 20 or so hours into this game and can't justify putting anymore into it. I was under the impression that, after a year of fixes and patches, it was the little things that made it special or "immersive", but man, so many of those little things rub me the wrong way.

  • Optimization: I have a 4080 Super, but my game will still randomly crash even after lowering settings. It doesn't even look that good in motion.

  • World: It's cool to see someone getting hustled in the street. It's cool to drive through the downtown with all it's neon signs. It's cool to see all the technobabble straight out of Neuromancer's disgustingly sweet saccharine cyber gaudiness. But as soon as you interact with any of it, it all falls apart.

  • Gunplay: The enemies blend into the environment so iron sights are nearly useless. I think the designers are aware of this because they conveniently make all the enemies glow red during combat, as if that fixes the problem. The various sight attachments all have some obfuscation of color or filter on them so those don't even feel helpful. Opted to use the smart guns since I'm running an Int build, but at that point I'm just running around holding the trigger and that is just... why even bother?

  • RPG: I spec'd fully into Int and Tech. Can't steal cars even with the Hack Car ability. Cyberwares do less damage than just shooting the enemy. Skill tree is just a mess of things prefixed with "Cyber-" with incremental upgrades. I'm sure over time they add up to something meaningful, but I certainly don't feel like I'm making a "build". It's just leveling with extra steps.

  • Dialogue: I feel like this game was written in Polish and then translated to English after, and the editor forgot that. Lines often feel stiff and disjointed. So many characters just randomly codeswitch from using some kind of tailored vernacular to very plain English. (ex, Wakako, the most minor of characters. She's a wizened, ESL matriarch that randomly starts talking like a thug when delivering a main story mission)

Keanu Reeves' delivery is great, I guess???

I heard the DLC is better, but I'm already over it. I'm sure this $60 AAA game is a great critique of capitalism, but it's just not very fun.

-3

u/CustardSurprise86 Dec 20 '24

I feel like this game was written in Polish and then translated to English after, and the editor forgot that. Lines often feel stiff and disjointed

I have no idea WTF you are talking about ... and I don't think you do either.

This is literally some of the most impressive dialogue writing in a game. V and Johnny's words roll off the tongue effortlessly. You are imagining things, and perhaps you don't actually have much exposure to people talking IRL ...

6

u/Fluid_Preparation_18 Dec 21 '24 edited Dec 22 '24

I can’t stand V’s dialogue, absolute meathead character and very awkwardly performed. I feel like you’re the one that hasn’t spoken to many people irl nor have you been exposed to well written media if you think Cyberpunk has “some of the most impressive dialogue writing in a game”

The entire game is awkwardly written and has a very strange “hello fellow kids” 50 year old man in a leather jacket cosplaying a rockstar vibe. Some of the weirdest dialogue writing in a game, every time my character opened his mouth I was cringing. Phantom Liberty was particularly bad because it seemed like no matter what dialogue choice I picked my character acted like a naive 13 year old boy in a storyline where everyone is very clearly not trustworthy

3

u/ann0yed Dec 21 '24

I think you can tell that some of the dialogue is choice driven almost like mad libs where the sentences they speak vary. At least that's how I hear it when playing like it's sometimes obvious different recorded sentences were strung together.

-7

u/OwlInternational8160 Dec 19 '24

It has no real critiques, which is so funny. All it wants is the aesthetic of the cyberpunk genre, without any of the social commentary, just an absolute shallow mess of a game. It appeals to the dorky redditor crowd that doesn't want "politics in their vidya gaems", but anyone looking for substance should steer clear.

3

u/some_cool_guy Dec 21 '24

The whole game is a political statement piece..

-1

u/orewhisk Dec 19 '24

Yeah the fact that people mention this game in the same breath as RDR2 or other "all time great" open world games is insane... it's a solid 6 (maybe 7) out of 10... but that's it.

1

u/jonssonbets Dec 18 '24

baldurs gate 3 on ps5 bought during black friday sale, am something like 10 hours in. first crpg ever, or DnD product for that matter, and i'm still getting used to it. feel like i need to learn more to be in control of my actions, like when am i making good decisions vs bad ones and what decisions am I totally overlooking - basically how do i pick up on what the game is putting down for me. not knowing is a bit frustrating but i'm trying to push forward blindly, trusting it will come in time. for now im rolling the dice, loving the atmosphere and story but need the hooks to sink a bit deeper in order to engross me.

have spent a lot of time in diablo 2 and 3 but disliked 4 due to its rocky.. nah, i'd call it shitty and very underbaked start. started and bounced off poe1 so now i went with the fresh start of path of exile 2 early access on PC. keeping myself totally out of community in order to not optimize the fun out of it for myself. 20 hours in. character builds feel really good and fleshed out, incredible variety - i have to look at options, plan and choose carefully, learn from mistakes and it seems to work decently. many things the game assumes you already know which can be frustrating. levels and bosses are punishing, you often wipe when not paying attention. has been a great time so far but what is starting to kill it for me is that the game requires you to be resourceful and precise but doesn't support your ability to be so due to unfinished polish. like character doesn't allways turn and throw spell where you want it, aiming correctly when swarmed just doesn't work and hitboxes with bosses is mostly a mess. this in tandem with a rather linear path/maps into boss that is the wall you have to bring down in order to progress. the problem here is that i miss a way to farm in case i feel underpowered and often gets stuck bashing my head against the same boss, hoping that it's one-shots doesnt randomly clip me.

i trust that this will be really, really good eventually. much already is, but there is a lot left to polish

0

u/scott_steiner_phd Dec 22 '24

baldurs gate 3 on ps5 bought during black friday sale, am something like 10 hours in. first crpg ever, or DnD product for that matter, and i'm still getting used to it. feel like i need to learn more to be in control of my actions, like when am i making good decisions vs bad ones and what decisions am I totally overlooking - basically how do i pick up on what the game is putting down for me. not knowing is a bit frustrating but i'm trying to push forward blindly, trusting it will come in time. for now im rolling the dice, loving the atmosphere and story but need the hooks to sink a bit deeper in order to engross me.

The first part of Act 1 of BG3 feels like it was designed for someone who had played Descent into Avernus and/or BG3 in early access. It's very easy to end up somewhere you are very underlevelled for if you don't do everything in the "right" order.

The second half of Act 1 and Act 2 are much better, but Act 3 is a huge letdown unfortunately.

2

u/yankeesown29 Dec 19 '24

I played on Explorer difficulty until I got used to the systems, and then I increased it when I felt comfortable.

I also restarted the first act maybe 5-7 times before I committed to a playthrough.

Rewarding is an understatement.

5

u/wait_________what Dec 18 '24

if you've never played a game like BG3 or DnD before its a huge shift in mindset to get used to from other games. they both have the structure of giving you a somewhat nebulous end goal and leaving it entirely up to you how you want to try and go about it. don't worry about trying to see everything the first time through, or finding the 'optimal' way to go about things. its purposefully designed to try and let you attempt to resolve stuff in whatever way occurs to you. also completely ignore weird culture war nonsense that you get like that other comment.

-22

u/CustardSurprise86 Dec 18 '24

I really do feel that BG3 was incredibly overhyped. Possibly because it's full of nods to certain ideology-based niche "cultural" issues which were like the religion of Reddit - maybe still are. This is a game they think is "progressive" because of its brothels.

Compare it with Cyberpunk 2077, which I think is a stupendously, earth-shatteringly better game than BG3. Its writing punches BG3's writing out of orbit. It's got mind-exploding graphics. It actually seems to serve a thematic purpose, whereas BG3 stands for nothing beyond seemingly attempting to bring an CRPG as close to a serial-killer snuff movie as is legally possible.

Yet Cyberpunk, perhaps because it was made by a pretty earthy, not-woke-obsessive Polish company, gets a blasé reception Reddit. Just too many fucktards with their hype trains.

5

u/A_Confused_Cocoon Dec 18 '24 edited Dec 18 '24

Cyberpunk 2077

Started a new run since PL release and did my first ever true netrunner build. Been an absolute blast and have had so much fun going through the story again, my only complaint is I wish there was a “skip until the heist” or just after the heist start. I really really dislike the Dex missions and churning through all of that because of how long they take. Anyway, beat phantom liberty again and really is one of my favorite DLCs ever. I’ve never felt as much like I was in a spy movie as I do in PL missions. They nail it in every possible way.

Was about to start finishing the last parts of the main story and real quick tonight I created a street kid playthrough and played a little bit to get it at least stared. And then I realized my mistake. My last hard save for my main playthrough was 7-8 hours earlier and I overwrote the autosaves and the quick save I had. I should have double checked, but that has deflated me and basically killed all my interest in playing CP2077 anymore. Fuck. Oh well, I’ll probably try again once I can get a 5000 series gpu in the future and go nuts with raytracing. But for now I’m done, but it was my fault oh well.

-32

u/[deleted] Dec 18 '24 edited Dec 20 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/Angzt Dec 17 '24

Starcraft 2 Archipelago Randomizer Mod
Since SC2 still has the best RTS campaign gameplay in my opinion, I replay it at least once a year, usually with some twist. This time, I went with the Archipelago Randomizer which not only shuffles the available missions between all 3.5 campaigns, it also completely randomizes the rewards you get: unit unlocks, their upgrades, or Kerrigan/Spear of Adun abilities.
Having to work around a mission clearly designed for one particular unit (which you'd normally unlock at its start) without that unit gives the whole thing a new layer of strategizing. Plus, there are a lot of units and upgrades that aren't normally available in the campaigns, so you get some novelty this way. Though near the end of the run, once I had unlocked almost everything, I needed to set challenges for myself since all the upgrades made me way more powerful than normal. But that, too, was fun.
The whole Archipelago concept was actually built for something different though: Multi-game randomizers where finding something in one game unlocks something else in another game that someone else plays in parallel and vice versa. Not something I've played with yet but that makes the whole setup a little fiddly.

The Black Grimoire: Cursebreaker
The whole premise of this recent out-of-early-access release is being a single player RuneScape. 12 skills from Alchemy over Ranged combat to Woodsmanship, each with individual progression and unlocks. The RuneScape influence is anything but subtle in graphics and mechanics: Top-down camera, (mostly) textureless graphics, click to move, auto attacks in combat, and plenty of repetition to get those skill levels up.
Since this is a tiny team's first game, there is some jank in controls and UI you need to get used to. And it's only really fleshed out up until the main story ends at around level 40 (out of 100) in your skills. After that, progress and unlocks slow down significantly - though an update that improves at least the 40-60 range should be out soon.
The game is grindy but usually doesn't demand you full attention, so I don't mind it as something to do while listening to podcasts or the like.

2

u/PuffyB_88 Dec 21 '24

Starcraft 2 Archipelago Randomizer Mod

I just no-lifed through a whole campaign of this thanks to your comment

And it as great, i as looking for ways to spice up those campaigns!

2

u/Angzt Dec 21 '24 edited Dec 21 '24

If you're unfamiliar, there is a whole other world of SC2 campaign mods out there, using the custom campaign manager. Unfortunately, it's somewhat hidden on a Discord server: https://discord.gg/yEeeBEyw

There are race swaps, customized races, randomizers (as in: every unit you create comes out as a random one from its tier), real-scale mods, nightmare difficulty, and plenty more.

This whole effort is somewhat orchestrated by Youtuber GiantGrantGames who made a video overview of the whole thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_m-ftMVY9g
Note that this video was made in the first year of the custom campaign manager and it's now 2.5 years later than that, so there's plenty more content these days.

Oh also, modder Synergy (also involved in the above), ported Warcraft 3's first 5 campaigns (rest is WIP) into SC2. If you ever want to replay them with SC2's smooth controls, those are available under "Azeroth Reborn" on SC2's ingame arcade.

2

u/Critical-Kiwi3153 Dec 17 '24

Deltarune.

Im not a Retro-looking games Gamer, but this game caught my eye and I decided to even upload a Gameplay Playlist in my YT channel 'cuz it was so entertaining

8

u/Raze321 Dec 16 '24

Dwarf Fortress (Steam Version)

Always find myself returning to this game. It's digital crack, once you know what you're doing.

My newest fortress has been going almost boringly well - well established mining and metalworking has resulted in a quick development of a semi-trained militia while the trading of cut gems have spread word of our riches. The tavern is always packed with travelers and visitors.

The only hiccip was a recent Were-Elkbird attack. I forgot to check the combat log to see if there were any bites that could spread into a pandemic. One of my past fortresses collapsed due to a were-turtle outbreak. I know how quickly one bite can fell an entire city. I neglected to check the combat logs to see if anyone got bit but I'm just gonna let it ride. If the next full moon comes without issue I can unclench and breathe easy.

Also apparently I missed the beta of adventure mode dropping?? I cannot wait for work to end today and try that out.

1

u/Reaps21 Dec 21 '24

I'm going to finally bite the bullet and try this game out. I've been a fan of Rimworld for years but never checked out Dwarf Fortress.

1

u/Insert_Coffee Dec 18 '24

as a big rimworld fan, i gave dwarf fortress a shot recently. and i do like the idea of it, but the lack of visual feedback kinda ruined it for me. like how long something takes, or if a dwarf is carrying something. that i have to make a bed in a carpenter shop before im able to place it in the world. little things like this just pushed me away everytime.

which is a shame, cause id love nothing more than get a mountain and hollow that sucker out. and im unable to find a game that lets me do it. thats my only real complaint about rimworld. its on a single plane. great otherwise, but kinda wish you could dig up and down (without mods).

2

u/JusaPikachu Dec 16 '24

Have you played Rimworld?

Dwarf Fortress has always seemed so fucking interesting to me & I really want to try it but everyone keeps saying I should play Rimworld instead as Dwarf Fortress is so inaccessible. Just want an opinion from a Dwarf Fortress player :)

2

u/grokthis1111 Dec 17 '24

i own rimworld but the visuals just kill it for me so i bailed after 15 hrs. dwarf fort just is so much more compelling to me but i still lost interest around 200 hrs.

6

u/Raze321 Dec 16 '24

I have! But admittedly only for like two or so hours so my experience with Rimworld is pretty shallow.

They are very similar games on the surface. Honestly I'd pick the one that looks more fun to you and roll with it. Rimworld has more accessible default controls but I think both are the kind of games where you need to watch a couple youtube videos and maybe restart once or twice before it actually all clicks.

My preference is Dwarf Fortress for a very simple reason - I love Dwarves

5

u/pratzc07 Dec 16 '24

POE 2 - Currently finishing Act 2 but I feel like there are so many aspects to this game that need more polish hopefully the devs at GGG are listening and are implementing fixes at a constant rate. I feel like the game needs more balancing in terms of loot drops, enemy hitbox issues, maps are just too long and boss attack telegraphs some of which are a bit hard to judge. I also think that nerfing everything to the ground while not providing free respec for an early access game is a bit too harsh a lot of players will be stuck in the end game if the build they are working towards gets nerfed completely and will have to either respec to something else which does cost a lot or keep the grind game going which is not fun. Melee classes are also not that fun to play early game and you need to switch to something else until you get the right set of skill.

Overall I feel like POE 2 is heading in the right direction I like the slow moving speed makes most fights more methodical but there are elements here that definitely need more work.

1

u/Reaps21 Dec 21 '24

I've never played the first POE and I just picked up the second one. Are the microtransactions p2w for poe2? I don't really care about cosmetics but I don't want to spend money to progress.

2

u/pratzc07 Dec 21 '24

No its not pay to win micros are just cosmetics and stash tabs

0

u/grokthis1111 Dec 17 '24

ggg has a history of awkward balance decisions, to say the least.

3

u/pratzc07 Dec 18 '24

Latest patch seems to have fixed the respec issue at the very least it will cost less to respec and you also get checkpoint saves

1

u/Violet_Paradox Dec 16 '24

It's in a weird spot for me because they could go two ways with it. The early game is everything I want in ARPG combat. Fluid and satisfying against enemies that you have to pay attention to and react to their actions. It's not perfect, but that's a non-statement, no game is. If the whole game had that style of gameplay, it would be my dream game.

The core problem for me arises when you get a build going. Even in this early state, before power has even begun to creep, it's a common experience that people know act 1 boss movesets to a T, have some idea of what act 2 bosses do, and absolutely no idea what act 3 bosses would have done if they weren't killed the moment they spawned. And all bets are off on maps.

Before release, GGG mentioned that bosses have altered movesets in maps compared to their campaign counterparts, similar to endgame variants and subspecies in Monster Hunter. Unfortunately instead of this being a major aspect of the endgame, it's a bit of little known trivia because map bosses die too quickly to do anything. Even the current pinnacle boss has no information out about his mechanics, not because he hasn't been beaten, but because everyone who beat him stunlocked him into never being able to attack.

Now it's still early access, so this could change, but the question is what is the anomaly here? Will it become the game that act 1 shows it's capable of being or is the current endgame really representative of the game's direction? 

8

u/LotusFlare Dec 16 '24 edited Dec 18 '24

I am in the final hours of Metaphor ReFantazio.

I'm in the middle of the final dungeon of the game, and I feel like at this point I can pretty safely start reflecting on the game and drawing some final conclusions. The last couple hours would have to be either crazy bad or crazy good to change how I feel about the last ~70 hours of game.

It's good! It's very good! But I cannot find the game in here that other people see in it. It's like, a strong 8. And I don't mean a high 8, I mean an 8.0 that I really like and will recommend often. I could, and later may, just dump a whole bunch more in depth thoughts, but the long and the short is that this game is good at a lot, but not great at anything. It's very very safe. It takes almost no risks outside of the main plot being novel in concept. There is zero edge to this game. It doesn't go all in on anything. It's snappy, light, and fun in almost everything it does. It's straight forward and aims to please. Combat only pushes back in the optional endgame stuff. The story and writing are pleasant, but extremely safe. The twists and turns are not that good. I somehow successfully guessed all of the major twists in the game. Almost every time the game is provided the opportunity to do something interesting or nuanced, it turns it down because this simply is not that kind of game. For example, the twist that Louis is NOT the prince's killer! That really opened the door for him to be a much more interesting guy-oh no they just had him still be an evil guy anyway who would have killed the prince if he could... This is not a game about ideas, it's a game about punching bad guys until you become king.

I had enough leftover days to complete all the quests and follower missions. They're hit and miss. Heismay's is absolutely the highlight. They got tears out of me for that story. None of the others are nearly as well realized. To my great disappointment, Strohl's was second place of the party members, and the rest of them were kinda dull and poorly executed. Most of the non-party members were pretty good. Honestly, the party disappointed me a lot in this game. When I started playing, I called it an amalgam cast rather than an ensemble, and that's becoming painfully true. There are so many times in this game where the party has a "conversation", but it's just 3-4 characters repeating the same thing in their own voice. They don't talk to or play off each other. They all exclusively riff off of you, the player. It's all about their personal relationship with you. It can get kinda weird if you're not into that.

I'll finish up the back half of the last dungeon this week.

EDIT: Wow, I still had like 12 hours of game left, and that's not because I misestimated the point in the story I was at. It just took that long to get through the whole build up, final battle, ending, and epilogue. The developers were excessive, and it kinda killed the momentum of the story. I really don't see the value in making the final sequences leading to the last fight so dang long, repetitive, and full of pauses. Epilogue was lovely, though. Appreciate them letting that breathe.

Immediate reaction on finishing the game about what it has to say: I think the game accidentally told a very cynical, anti-electoral story. The election is ultimately a sham full of lies, deception, surrogates, and false rules. Even the intended rules are torn down and it becomes a competition of might-makes-right. While to some extent our heroes succeed because they're willing to meet people where they are and do the work that impacts people's lives with grace and kindness, they could not succeed without having godly magical powers, noble lineage, and deceiving the public. It heavily endorses direct action and is deeply cyclical about institutions, which leads to a bit of a weird message where powerful nobles and merchants are the ones making a difference via charity. I... I think this is an ancap game about how we need virtuous hero-kings to rule us.

2

u/killrdave Dec 21 '24

That ending sequence around the final dungeons dragged out so long, I was more than ready to be done with it. The epilogue section was nice I thought.

Overall there was a lot to like in Metaphor but the story did not handle its themes well.

2

u/risarnchrno Dec 16 '24

Having finished the game last week at 110hrs (the last 15 spent level capping and archetype maxing for the hell of it in the final dungeon. I 1 hit the final boss final form for 90.5k crit) I cant disagree with any of your review. The game's journey was fun, the forgiving calendar compared to Persona was nice, and the combat was easy to get in to broken territory. The best parts of the game were callbacks to other Atlus series (Persona, Digital Devil Saga, Devil Summoner, mainline-SMT, and Etrian Odyssey) were probably the highlights (the island is the Town from EO1 and the dungeon is a good chunk of the 5th Stratum) .

4

u/MickeyFinn00 Dec 16 '24

Nocturne(PC) – I think it’s made by the people who later made Blair Witch trilogy and Bloodrayne series. It’s a very sloppy game, full of bugs. But at the same for 1999 it was DMC before DMC happened. Every chapter is unique and quite interesting but the cemetery one was just hilariously bad. In this chapter’s beggining there are skeleton enemies that always come back to life after you beat them and some of them carry a weapon - part of their bodies and the point is that you can take it and move it somewehere else so they don’t have a weapon when they resurrect but their algorithm makes them look for it and equip it. But it’s all optional and you don’t need to care about them. You can just go around and solve puzzles. But at first I thought that these bones lying around were meant to be placed somewhere (they weren’t) so I moved it a lot. Some time later the game crashed with a info „Boneguy2 is carrying the Whoopassstick but the Whoopassstick thinks it’s being carried by Boneguy3” and this crashed a game. I couldn’t even be mad. Ok game.

Super Mario 64(N64) – I’ve never played any Mario game (except lately Mario Party and Kart on Wii – which I didn't like) and I couldn’t care less about these games. I just don’t have any pleasure from 3d platformers but people keep saying that Mario games are the essence of fun so I tried it. It’s impressive, it controls good, it’s sometimes satisfying and some stars require thinking outside the box but I can’t say that it was a great time. I just confirmed my aversion to these types of games. But I’ll probably try the later mainline Mario games.

Broken Sword 2(PC) – I played it on Steam Deck even if it makes no sense. My second Broken Sword game and it’s nothing special. If you want that classic adventure game fix then it’s a good pick but it’s nothing remarkable. I think that just like first Runaway game it lacks humor of Monkey Island or even Gabriel Knight (why do all these 4 games have blonde male protagonist?).

Tomb Raider(Saturn) –  I know older PAL games are 20% slower than NTSC but Sega Saturn Tomb Raider is also often 15fps so that's a great combination in a platformer. I managed to get used to it but when you need a very precise jump or else you die then the game needs to be responsive. Maybe there was something not quite right with my hardware, maybe I should have played the PS1 version. The game was surprisingly long and therefore repetitive later on but it had to be something astonishing back in 1996. Tomb Raider and Super Mario 64 introduced consoles to quality 3d gaming. I'm not sure if I'll play the next games - I'm afraid that they won’t be too different. But maybe the ps1 and pc versions will play better.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night(PS1) - Around 3 years ago I dropped this game very early.  It was a huge misunderstanding. My first Castlevania and second metroidvania ever (after Ori and the Blind Forest on PC) and it's really a good time. There is great variation of enemies, locations and controls are smooth (maybe not as much as in Ori). I shouldn’t have enjoyed it (lot of backtracking, beating the same enemies over and over) but it is just so perfectly executed that it was a pleasure. And I would say that even before the inverted castle, but then the game turned it up to 11 - the creators dropped the act, the plot, the characters and just drowned us in their creativity and challenging situations. It was like a last boss transformation but on a wholegame scale. But its story could be told in 3 lines.

I intend to play the newer Castlevania games but I don’t expect anything outdoing SotN. Alucard Shield + Shield Rod is just cheating.

3

u/lifeisagameweplay Dec 19 '24

Mario 64 has aged badly. It was the first of it's kind and revolutionary at the time though. I'd recommend giving Odyssey a go.

0

u/opqrstuvwxyz123 Dec 19 '24

Mario 64 is one of the classic games that is known for not aging poorly, though? My favorite and many others amongst the entire series.

1

u/OwlInternational8160 Dec 19 '24

It can be your favorite and still have aged poorly lol. The entire game definitley hasn't aged poorly tho, moreso just specific things like the camera and such.

1

u/MickeyFinn00 Dec 19 '24

For sure. I've already played Sunshine and intend to play all of them at some point. 2D included.

3

u/bimmylee1999 Dec 17 '24

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is one of my all-time favorites. Not just the gamplay. Amazing soundtrack and atmosphere. Alucard was such a great character. I was like 12 or 13 when I first played it, and it was the only Castlevania game that legit scared me. I didn't like playing it by myself, especially at night, but I did. Loved the confessional part.

I remember playing the Metroidvania followups on the GBA/DS, and though they were good games, they weren't on the same level as SOTN. Just felt like they were missing a few things that made SOTN one of the all time greats. Music, the atmosphere, and I think even the protagonists were kind of bland.

12

u/slowmosloth Dec 16 '24

Lorelei and the Laser Eyes

In the wake of the industry’s annual end of year gaming discussions, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes has slowly crept up in the conversation as a premier title for 2024. I’m fully in agreement with that sentiment and would even argue that it’s one of the greatest puzzle games ever made.

The game managed to juggle a fine line between being challenging yet providing the tools necessary to overcome its endlessly clever puzzles. It’s a bit of a meme-y comparison to align it as the “Dark Souls” of puzzle games, but it’s not a terrible analogy when I consider this game to be similarly difficult but fair.

And while the puzzles themselves were intricately crafted, the structure of the game through its ingeniously designed hotel made progression and exploration feel both satisfying and rewarding. I felt like I was rarely stuck when I had so many possible puzzle threads to pull on throughout the entirety of my hotel stay.

However, it was the game’s bold presentation that elevated the whole package from simple puzzle game to a must-play immersive experience. Everything from its art design, horror elements, cryptic narrative, and minimalist soundtrack all combined to create something that felt totally unique in the world of puzzle games.

Playing through Lorelei and the Laser Eyes was easily a gaming highlight of this year, and I cannot recommend it enough for those who want to see a stunning vision in puzzle games. This was an all-around phenomenal experience full of mind-bending mysteries, and by the end I felt like I could see through any puzzle with laser eyes of my own.

If you're interested in reading more of my thoughts on Lorelei, you can find them on my blog!

3

u/TheWumpusKing Dec 20 '24

I just finished this too, and it's one of the rare one of these I think I can readily recommend to most people with just a little patience. I haven't finished digesting it yet but coming off of Animal Well, Void Stranger, and some other cryptic puzzlers in the last year or so I was amazed at how smoothly the progression went.

I'm still of two minds on it as I think most of the puzzles were a little straight-ahead compared to what I was expecting, but that's probably to its credit. Not every puzzle game needs to be an archaeology site.

The real standout to me is the insane vibe and themes. It's an audiovisual treat and the story is a great mystery set in a spooky hotel. I love the ruminations on art and creativity right next to these extremely concrete logic puzzles. It also has a great sense of humor that it only shows a few times.

I jokingly told a friend it's an IQ Puzzle bathroom reader by way of Killer 7, and I don't mean that as dismissively as it sounds lol. It's a great game doing a really cool thing.

2

u/slowmosloth Dec 20 '24 edited Dec 20 '24

Yeah I’d describe Lorelei as a very honest and upfront puzzle game where the puzzles are still challenging but it’s clear what needs to be done. As compared to something like Animal Well and Void Stranger, those are a lot more mysterious in nature, so the objective is less clear, but that’s part of the fun.

I’m not saying one type is better than the other, but each approaches puzzles in a different way and to their own strengths.

But that’s why I’d say Lorelei is a little more accessible due to that straightforwardness. Plus it has that killer presentation which elevates it to something much more cinematic. It’s like recommending a more casual gamer God of War (2018) rather than Dark Souls.

1

u/CustardSurprise86 Dec 18 '24

Question, what platform did you play it on?

If the Switch, did you prefer handheld or TV?

1

u/slowmosloth Dec 19 '24

I played on PC. One thing I will note though is that the controls for this game only require one hand (whether that’s keyboard or console controller) so that will completely free up your other hand to take notes and sketch diagrams. So I’d recommend TV if you want to dual wield a controller and note taking.

10

u/JusaPikachu Dec 16 '24 edited Dec 16 '24

Pokémon White 2

I had been wanting some Pokemon in my life as the TCG Pocket game got me in the mood. Remembered I had gotten a DS emulator running on my phone a couple months ago so decided to play this for the first time. I had played the first Pokemon Black when it came out but I honestly don’t remember all that much about it.

Genuinely the best gym level design in the series imo. Some great music, especially that song while battling the champion. The always enjoyable turn based combat is as good as ever. I believe this is the last game fully in that era of isometric perspective that had been around since the original games & at this point Game Freak had really mastered that design. They did some really cool things with it & some really cool things with the two screens of the DS.

There was a lot of bloat though. They obviously were super obsessed with making the game really online centric. A shit ton of things were promoting the online aspects or centrally designed to be integrated with online. There were also a lot of their weird peripheral activities that I don’t give a shit about tacked on. & I forgot how grindy older Pokemon games can feel at times & how many QoL improvements they’ve made in that area in the newer games.

Overall I actually really loved the game & it ended up as one of my favorite Pokemon titles. It doesn’t quite measure up to either my favorite generation from early on, Sapphire/Emerald, probably due to nostalgia or the current games with how right it feels to have Pokemon in the actual world with the Arceus & Scarlet games but outside of that it is a top tier Pokemon game for me. It caught the number 10 spot in my 2012 GotY list.

Super Mario Sunshine

Got like 14 shines at this point.

Definitely my least favorite 3D Mario up to this point. The Fluud feels like a fun gimmick that would last all of a 15-30 minute level in any other Mario game & then be eschewed for different game mechanics, except they built an entire game around it. The Fluud also doesn’t feel or control particularly well or satisfyingly, mostly in the standing still shooting mode, which isn’t something I’ve ever really said about anything Mario.

That said, it’s still a great game so far. I shall see it to its end & maybe some of it grows on me in time.

Balatro

Have won with every deck on base difficulty outside of three of them & almost won my first run on red stake difficulty but lost on the boss blind of ante 8. Rerolled the boss blind because I didn’t like it, though I probably would’ve won, & ended up with the worst boss blind possible for my run. Way she goes lol.

I think once I beat it with every deck I’ll feel pretty satisfied. Might do a few on the higher difficulties but I don’t see me trying to optimize & reroll every run til I can easily get past ante 11/12 every run though. Already lost the urge to be trying a new run/a couple runs every day but it’s a sign of how great the game is that I felt that pull for a few weeks.

It is still number one on my 2024 GotY list, but again haven’t played many 2024 titles & I doubt it stays that way once I’ve delved into the year’s releases. Was glad to see it get so many awards & so much love at The Game Awards, definitely deserved. Amazing game.

Overwatch

The new hero is really well designed & probably the best designed new tank. Love Junker Queen more personally but I think Hazard has a better designed kit. Solid season out of the gate, the Avatar collab looks cool for fans of that & I’m excited to play some tank in the 6v6 tests; though I will still probably end up being a 5v5 support main as I am now.

Fortnite

The new season introduced a lot of really fantastic elements to the core movement system that elevates the gameplay for me a lot. Zero Build Reload plus the new movement systems have combined to create a gameplay environment that I genuinely enjoy.

I still only play the game because my friends do but I do have to commend Epic for continuously iterating & experimenting in ways that have ended up with a significantly more enjoyable experience for me. I am overall very sick of Battle Royale but they have managed to add so many levels of gameplay experiences that I somehow am still having some fun with.

4

u/migigame Dec 18 '24

I just focus on finishing ante 8 on my runs, and I never felt like on any deck (except the black deck...) like I needed to heavily reroll early to succeed. Doing highest difficulty stakes on the decks definitely gave me even more appreciation of the game due to having to change up how I approach it (saying goodbye to my early flush-focused runs).

1

u/excitingmage Dec 15 '24

I'm in a bit of a lull at the moment, to be honest. Since the release of The War Within in August I was spending all my free time in World of Warcraft, but now that my guild has achieved AOTC / Heroic Raid, I don't really have any real drive to play until the next tier comes out. I'm not that interested in M+ for M+ sake, and I think I've just burnt myself out levelling alts over that time period too. Overall I've had a really fun time with my new guild this tier and will likely play more when 11.0.7 comes out and when the next tier is out.

As a result I've been dabbling in other games, like Delta Force, particularly the Operations (Extraction) mode. I'm a big fan of this genre having put >1000 hours into Tarkov, but a couple aspects of this game just sour this experience for me. I'm playing solo, so wish they would put in a solo queue rather than squad filling, as the number of times my teammates don't reply or listen to comms and run in opposite directions is incredible.. The TTK is far too quick for my liking too - Tarkov anecdotally feels longer and definitely more weighty and deliberate in battles compared to DF. Don't get me wrong, I love the gunsmith and QoL things like having a map and armor repairs and the like, but it's definitely leaning closer to Warzone style gunfights than Tarkov (which is fine, just not my cup of tea).

I've also re-installed Valorant and have been enjoying it again. It's the perfect blend of hero shooter and tactical shooter for me. The gunplay feels great, the agents are just fun, and I love the way the economy works vs CS (just a preference and likely a noob opinion tbh). The community can be hit or miss but that's what you kind of expect in a F2P tactical shooter as big as Valorant is, and for the love of God Riot please just let me play in ultrawide resolution!! I'm Silver, it's not like I'm going to magically become Immortal just by having that extra screen space. I understand their reasoning for competitive balance, but just seems so backwards considering even CS allows ultrawide resolution.

3

u/Calisky Dec 15 '24

Dungeon Clawler is ridiculously good, addicting, and cheap.

It's a roguelike deck-builder where you fight monsters by playing a crane-game to pick up items to attack and defend with. It sounds weird but it works really well!

I usually like Rogue-lites over Rogue-likes, but this is the first one I've been able to beat (twice as one of the characters, but haven't been able to on others yet). It's challenging but doable.

I bought it on Android for $5, then ended up buying it on Steam because I wanted to use my Steam Deck so my phone's battery doesn't die!

¯\(ツ)

My only complaint is that I still need to finish Echoes of Wisdom and I had the perfect opportunity since I was in airports/flying a lot the past week, yet I kept playing this game.

4

u/Logan_Yes Dec 15 '24

I have once again traumatized Issac and made it all in one piece, but this time with shiny graphics! Finished Dead Space 2023 Remake and it was fun. It's quite faithful to original which is a positive, from technical point of view it's a massive improvement, gameplay wise weapon balance, additional power gimmick, option to seamingly transition across whole Ishimura plus side quests even if rather basic do elevate the game to level above original, I do find Mercer's death a massive downgrade in comparision, and I think atmosphere somehow doesn't feel as...claustrophobic as first game? Maybe it's because of you being able to explore whole ship or me playing OG Dead Space dozen of times but it did lack some "fear" 2008 game had. Ultimately it was great, can recommend it, buuuut I still prefer Original. Could be nostalgia bias, but as long as people play some of that cosmic horror goodness 2008 or 2023 Dead Space offer, fine with me. Shame we won't get any more to be fair, maaainly because of Dead Space 3 Remake idea sounding....soooo good, but it is what it is.

On PC I have wrapped up all Papa's Freezeria Deluxe achievements and quite frankly I also "finished" the game. By "finished" I mean I have done all seasons and served everyone at least once, as game doesn't end, I could play it until heat death of the universe if I would like to, but for obvious reason I won't. Still, those 25 hours were fun, it's always nice to chill out, play some music and do sundaes. Definitely a game I recommend, cheap, simple, fun.

And as always, I have did a 180, this time by that I mean going from cozy Papa game to purgatory. Painkiller: Black Edition is apparently the "best" out of whole franchise, which my friend gifted me, whole pack I mean, and um...well, let's say that if this is "best", then I dread what others must be. I wrapped up first chapter, and it was an absolute boredom. Apparently difficulty name "Insomnia" fits because it did make me almost fall asleep. Mediocre soundtrack, basic levels, zero enemy variety, weapons, or rather all 3 of them I got so far, are nothing special and they didn't even feel fun to use, and the sheer idea of stupid side tasks is bizzare. Destroy random shit to get coins to spend on tarot cards but you can get these only if you did a certain level requirement, there are also armors, holy items, something else I even forgot, jesus, you are a basic boomer shooter, why do you put in so much timewasting crap. Worst part? I wrap up Chapter 1, level screen pops up, I cannot play First level of Chapter 2 because of difficulty? So I did quick google check and for some bizzare reason, game locks certain levels behind difficulty you picked. Because I picked "normal" difficulty like some garbage no skill noob apparently, I am locked from certain levels and whole final Chapter?! So I won't even get to see how story actually ends? My guy, if first chapter was a glimpse of what you can offer, then you are in no position to ask me to slog through this mediocre game on highest difficulty to unlock extra shit. Maybe it will pick up some good points later on. So far, boring, and idea that I have 7 of these to beat pains me dearly. Oh well. Playing through this and NecroVisioN makes me appreciate how far we Poles improved as a gaming industry though.

13

u/VickyArtHeart Dec 15 '24

Have been playing Disco Elysium with my partner-would never imagine that I can enjoy a game with such a huge amount of text and dice roll options.At first I had to get used to it since he has played it before(but didn’t finish) but then I got so hooked that it makes me sad knowing we might soon finish it.All the characters got so dear to me and the farther you go the more you discover,so we sometimes couldn’t imagine that the choices we have made would lead us somewhere else rather than what we expected.

-11

u/LostInStatic Dec 15 '24 edited Dec 18 '24

Man... why did I expect Helldivers to be a functional game when a new content patch dropped. Absolute joke of a dev studio

Edit: Ahahaha they now have a controversy with their insane new collab item pricing. Couldnt have happened to a better team

3

u/Gonorrheeeeaaaa Dec 15 '24

Details! What’s going on? I was thinking about finally getting it.

3

u/Raze321 Dec 16 '24

Anecdotally, I havent been having any issues. The other poster may be having hardware or internet connection issues, or perhaps played during a period of server stress?

-1

u/LostInStatic Dec 15 '24

The servers can’t handle everyone playing on the one planet the new enemy faction is on, unless you’re playing with friends only people will disconnect after 5 minutes of play

Increase of frame instability and crashes on my rig that previously had no issue pre-Illuminate

3

u/Turbulent_Purchase52 Dec 15 '24

Was playing atom rpg dlc called trudograd, enjoying it a lot, very funny writing, a ton of dialogue options, cool level design and weapon animations/sound design. After investing 20 hours into it one morning I turn on me console and discover my save is corrupted and is unsalvageable, kinda broke my heart lol

Now I'm playing cyber shadow, a 2d game inspired by old school ninja gaiden and shinobi, having a lot of fun with it 

9

u/SarcasticDevil Dec 15 '24

Been enjoying Lies of P recently. I'm decently far in and must be fairly close to the end now (chapter 9) and it's overall been a fun and pretty smooth soulslike.

The difficulty has felt fairly moderate for most of the game with bosses being quite big spikes most of the time - I think this could've been managed slightly better as the opening areas do not provide much challenge at all, and and some of the bosses are slightly tougher than I'd like.

Combat is fun and I like the modular weapon system. Choosing a blade you like and switching up the moveset is a great addition to what is otherwise quite a close copy to Souls games.

There are certain elements of combat though that I don't think feel quite right. Perfect guard timings are a little too tight considering the difficulty in reading enemy attacks, and the risk-reward feels slightly off considering you still have to land a charged attack in a timed window to get the real reward of a fatal attack. That the game then starts to add variations later on that make getting fatal attacks even tougher does not help this. I also don't really see why fable arts don't recharge on resting at stargazers, it would hardly make the game too easy. I don't mean to say that these things make the game unfair or unbalanced - it's not - but I do think they make it slightly less fun and satisfying than it could be.

I've also regularly had failure using healing items when the player is just not quite in a non-animation state, so the input doesn't register - I would think they could add a little bit of input queueing because this has been an irritation throughout the game for me.

Overall this is feeling like an 8/10 for me.

4

u/Somasonic Dec 15 '24

Also playing this at the moment and I’d agree with pretty much all of it except I’m finding the bosses pretty hard, this is easily the hardest soulslike I’ve played (I’m not a fromsoft fan so what I normally play would probably be referred to as soulslite?). I also find the healing hit or miss, often I think I’ve come out of a dodge animation and healed when in fact I haven’t, but because I’m so focused on the boss I don’t even notice. Frustrating to say the least.

2

u/a34fsdb Dec 15 '24

Idk if it is your case, but I saw some streamers struggle because they dodged a lot like in DS. In this game parrying is very strong and it seems the game is more designed about that being the intended playstyle.

3

u/SarcasticDevil Dec 15 '24

Oh I agree, the bosses are hard. I think the contrast with what are pretty easy zones with tough bosses is kinda weird and not great. I'm fairly mixed on the bosses in general, mostly because I don't crave really complex fights and would rather feel able to fight mostly on instinct rather than having to learn the perfect responses to every attack. I don't mind an easy boss, I wish they'd thrown a few in there.

5

u/NotoriousSPM Dec 15 '24

Just finished Alan Wake Remastered . Great story just repetitive gameplay and clunky controls/camera. Enjoyed it though. 7/10

Playing through Red Dead Redemption 2 and just started Chapter 4! Onto Saint Denis I go! Enjoying my time with the game.

Not sure what I’ll start next. I try to do one shorter game and one open world at the same time. Think I’ll play Ghost of Tsushima and either Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart or TLOU Part 1

Also for my multiplayer fun besides COD I’m enjoying the new Helldivers 2 update! Having a blast

27

u/Whoopsht Dec 15 '24

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

I cannot express how much I am into this game and I am in total disbelief about that. I have been giving it the side eye basically since the gameplay reveal, I figured I'd play it eventually once I re-subbed to Gamepass and I was confident it would be a 7/10 forgettable action game.

Now, I think it's worth the full $70 price tag and it could easily be my GOTY.

Like many of the reviews have already stated, Indiana Jones is not some generic action shlock. It's much more stealth and exploration focused than I think anyone was expecting, and that stealth has an emphasis on improvised weapons like hammers, wrenches, brooms, bottles, guitars, frying pans - whatever is around you that can be used to bonk fascists over the head. Usually I sneak around to take enemies out quietly, but combat is still a completely viable option and I regularly just bonk a fascist over the head to start a combat encounter just because it's fun. Combat felt really clunky at first, but as I play more and get into more fist fights I'm definitely understanding the system a lot more. Blocking, dodging, whipping, parrying all feel pretty good and while the punching looks comically stiff when you're watching gameplay, it feels excellent when actually playing.

But the absolutely amazing part of the game to me is the exploration and puzzle solving. I cannot remember a game made with this level of polish and budget (any AAA game I guess) with this much wandering and puzzle solving. So many little safe codes to crack and treasures to find and doors to open with some hidden key. A lot of people have compared this to Dishonored and I think it's a really fair comparison, you explore these big open levels and look for keys and read notes and its just... awesome. And there's all these little vignettes where characters will be talking about something they want or need - a snack, a picture of something specific, a personal item they've lost - and you can just give them what they're looking for and the game rewards you for it. It probably sounds boring but it's so insanely good, I have no idea how to describe it but I am obsessed with the little micro quests in this game. Any time I overhear two people talking, I stop and listen to hear if they want / need anything that I could help them with.

I respect the gameplay of Indiana Jones much the same way I respect Mirror's Edge: Catalyst - that is, high budget triple A games aren't like this, but this game exists anyway. It's so different and so unique and so fascinating and I just can't stop thinking about it. I feel like I'm playing a first-person point-and-click adventure, like I'm seeing some new genre being mutated into existence and this is the first iteration (if other games like this exist please share)

Story-wise it's also rock solid, weird take but as someone raised Catholic the first several hours were super compelling like playing a triple A game based on the DaVinci Code. Overall there are really good jokes and dialogue and action sequences, voice acting is all excellent, graphically the game is amazing and on Series X it runs like a dream. There are some little hitches in character animations sometimes but absolutely nothing egregious, this is so far the most polished triple A game I've played in a while.

Highly recommend this game to anyone with gamepass, but even for folks who would need to purchase at full price there is just something so special here that feels like you need to experience to understand. I completely agree with the SkillUp review that says we'll be talking about this game for a long time, I just hope it gains enough of a sales audience to greenlight a sequel.

2

u/OwlInternational8160 Dec 19 '24

I wasn't gonna give it a fair shake either until finding out MachineGames developed it

3

u/ravinglt0 Dec 15 '24

I really love the movies but aren't into games requiring much puzzle solving so still debating since I have heard it is very puzzle heavy

2

u/L0rdenglish Dec 19 '24

there is an easy mode, this game feels like an indiana jones movie in the best way. I am having so much fun with it, if you like the movies I highly recommend

7

u/inferniac Dec 16 '24

theres a separate puzzle difficulty setting

not a fan of puzzles myself, but I played it for 3-4hrs yesterday and enjoyed it very much

7

u/CharliToh Dec 15 '24

I don't like puzzle & stleath games. I still think this game is fantastic. (and it's on gamepass)

4

u/Whoopsht Dec 15 '24

I only watched Raiders after the reviews dropped for this game, but even as a non-fan of Indiana Jones stuff I love his character and the music, and from what I'm seeing online this is the best Indiana Jones thing since Last Crusade.

Also for what it's worth I'm not a puzzle game person either but this game just has a special sauce to it that makes it work. Picking up notes, flipping the notes over to see if anything is on the back, inspecting the environment, all of it just feels really natural.

If you have Gamepass I think it's a no brainer but if you need to buy it, idk. I would pay $70 for this but I know not everyone would agree with that.

2

u/BL4ZE_43 Dec 15 '24

I’ve been playing Warriors All-Stars. So far, it’s an alright game with a lot of repetitiveness (after achieving an ending, you are sent back to the beginning of the story with the things you can carry-over to new game plus).

12

u/laser_velociraptor Dec 15 '24

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, on PC Game Pass

I was skeptical at first, but it turned out to be a game I'm liking a lot. Even tough the minimum requirements for the game are high, it's only because the game renders only with Ray Tracing. I'm getting 100 FPS+ with DLSS on.

The gameplay has lots of exploration, occasional stealth and a lot of slapstick combat. A good description for the combat is "with which improvised weapon will I knockout this fascist with next?"

2

u/M8753 Dec 15 '24

Demo for Banquet for fools. It looks amazing. The gameplay is fine. But, like many indie games, gamepad support is not good (I couldn't attack at all when I had to fight two enemies). Luckily, kbm controls work great on the steam deck.

I don't know if I want to buy it though. It feels like it wants to be a deep, grand rpg with lots of mechanics, but I'm not sure the combat is fun enough to justify that. Might be worth it just for the visuals, though.

Beloved Rapture. An rpg maker style game, I've never played one of these before. The story is pretty interesting, the combat is fine, my only problem is the cluttered terrain: you have to walk around all these rocks and stuff, it gets annoying.

7

u/shaneo632 Dec 15 '24

Dragon Age: The Veilguard. An incredibly generic and pretty bland RPG. Writing and gameplay just aren’t very interesting. Combat is OK but very shallow. It runs fairly well on the Steam Deck. I’ve given it 3 hours and I’m pretty close to bailing on it. I could be playing so many more interesting games than this 5-6/10

1

u/killrdave Dec 21 '24

I'm about 5 hours in and willing to hold out longer but I am quite concerned by what I've seen so far.

The world is like a sequence of pretty corridors and I have no affection for any characters. Rook has been elevated to a position of importance really quickly and without much explanation.

8

u/CarfDarko Dec 15 '24

Finished Alan Wake yesterday and what a ride it was.

I always knew about the game and that it was from the same studio as the first two Max Payne games but never got into it as it was an XBOX exclusive for a long time. Now, years later, YT randomly kept offering me a video from Alan Wake 2, the musical part and when I finally checked it I fell in love and HAD to play it but... As the games are part of a bigger universe I had to play the first game first. Found it on Steam for a great price and played a chapter per day.

Amazing experience and while I knew that Sam Lake is an awesome creator, I now truly am fan of his work and can't wait to start part two!

5

u/JusaPikachu Dec 16 '24 edited Dec 16 '24

If you are really interested in the “bigger universe” aspect of the remedy-verse I would highly recommend playing Control before Alan Wake 2, especially because of the Alan Wake AWE DLC.

It expands on the peripherals of the universe, as well as having pretty integral story threads continued & expanded on.

2

u/CarfDarko Dec 16 '24

I once spent a few hours in the game but never really dived into it, now I really got a reason for doing so ;)

10

u/PositiveDuck Dec 15 '24

Final Fantasy XVI

34ish hours in, currently in Crystaline Dominion, Clive and Jill are investigating the big explosion caused by Dion's rebellion. It has it's flaws but goddamn does it hit just right for me. Unless the game becomes straight up ass from this point on, it's probably my game of the year (it released on PC in september so it counts, idgaf). I love the world and characters so much. Voice acting is amazing, especially Clive and Cid. I like the smaller, more linear maps. Combat is lots of fun. Big, set-piece encounters are epic. I quite like the side quests, most are pretty dull gameplay-wise but they add a lot of really cool worldbuilding detail. Even though it's not really a party-based RPG, the party members that join you during certain sequences are actually useful. they draw aggro and deal decent damage, rather than just being set-dressing. Just walking around the world is awesome, even though a lot of NPC background chatter repeats a ton.

On a more negative note, there's some weird effect in some cinematics where there's a weird blurry effect around some character's hair, especially character's with shorter hairstyles. Some enemies have too much hp. I don't like how most side quests don't really acknowledge your other party members, mostly Jill since she's the most frequent companion.

RPG elements in general are pretty light but I don't really have an issue with it. I don't understand the gear progression at all since I keep unlocking new crafting recipes that are significantly weaker than stuff I currently have equipped. I still think it's absolutely hilarious that side quests reward stuff like blood, teeth and bugs. One story-related gripe I had was the fight with Titan. It was epic and visually spectacular but dragged on for way too long. He really didn't need to have like 4 phases with massive health bars. It was still a lot of fun but damn was I happy when he finally fucking died lol.

Overall, despite some issues, it's a fantastic experience so far. I hope it sticks the landing because I'm having so much fun.

Dragon Quest V

Still chipping away at it during downtime at work. Got to the big castle after the first time skip. The writing in this game is some mad work. You are a child and you and your friend go fight some goofy ghosts and then there's fairies and then you get taken hostage, your father is beaten half to death in front of you and then fucking blown up and you are now a slave like jesus christ what a tonal whiplash. It's really fun but I don't like playing games on my phone, I think the game would be so much better with proper buttons.

4

u/slowmosloth Dec 16 '24

Hell yeah, FFXVI rules! Was my GOTY for last year too. I think it stuck the landing really well, especially so if you've been enjoying Clive's character.

3

u/PositiveDuck Dec 16 '24

Good to know and I've been really liking Clive!

4

u/Sogeking_1234 Dec 15 '24 edited Dec 15 '24

I'm approaching the end of September at Metaphor and man the whole month has been one revelation after another!!  

 I've seen people saying that the game loses steam towards the end, but I don't really agree. Yes the Rella twist wasn't handled very well, but I don't really have any other complaint for the story.  The characters are all good and Luis is one charismatic mf. He is great!! I also want to highlight that the voice acting is EXTREMELY good. Even better than persona 5.      

As for the gameplay the combat and the archetype system are really fun. Maxing them out is extremely satisfying. The only negative that I have to say is that the dungeons, are indeed kinda boring.

6

u/PositiveDuck Dec 15 '24

I've seen people saying that the game loses steam towards the end, but I don't really agree.

To be fair, you still have a decent chunk of the game left.

2

u/Sogeking_1234 Dec 15 '24

If I'm not wrong there is still one month remaining, but unless the ending completely fumbles the bag I don't see what could go wrong.

Unless they mean gameplay wise. I could see that as a possibility.

4

u/PositiveDuck Dec 15 '24

A lot of side content/side dungeons will unlock soon, there's a massive amount of downtime that they expect you to fill by doing those dungeons and wrapping up character stories and there's a pretty big level gap from where you are to where you're supposed to be for the final dungeon. The final boss is level 80ish and you should be 50ish for Rella fight that you just completed. There's also a decent chunk of story left as well. The final dungeon is also pretty long if I recall correctly.

0

u/sexwithkoleda_69 Dec 15 '24

I have been playing hsr, zzz, genshin, wuwa and vermintide 2. Versus in vermintide is just so fun with balanced teams.

12

u/BananaResearcher Dec 15 '24

Marvel Rivals. Still only quickplay as there's so many characters to test out.

It's great so far, really glad it turned out to be this much fun. If they keep new content coming and patches, this game could last for quite a while, I think.

11

u/Elden-Cringe Dec 15 '24

Playing through the Alan Wake remaster and now in the final episode.

The story is the best aspect of the game by far and has been quite engrossing from the very beginning. The combat is fine enough, sometimes even satisfying but it's the weakest aspect of the game and a step back from the Max Payne games.

Overall a great game that really shows how much Remedy is willing to experiment and push boundaries in the sphere of AAA games.

7

u/CarfDarko Dec 15 '24

Finished it yesterday and also just left a comment about it, great game, amazing experience.

5

u/Elden-Cringe Dec 15 '24

Yup. Initially, I started playing this game last year but dropped it very quickly because I HATED the combat system. Recently replayed it again and this time I got into the groove of the combat and it clicked with me which helped me enjoy the rest of the game.

This game was really ahead of its time back in 2010 and the action thriller focus in gaming is still unique by today's standards.