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[Krathoon]

It seems like this will be out on gog in a bit. I just bought the first one on gog.

 

[mèx]

Played a couple hours but I'm not as far as I should be due to a somewhat bullshit death. Got grabbed and the displayed prompt to break free showed up as a mouse button instead of a controller! Didn't spam the correct button (which is 'X' on Dualsense) and died; and since I'm playing on normal, no autosave and I got sent back a good ways to my last save.

Really enjoying it so far though. Definitely feels like a game for genre fans and not so much for convincing those not already into this kind of game.

Edit: somewhat embarrassed to admit i got stuck a bit quite early. Didn't realize you could "use" weapons from your inventory. Basically exhausted everything else I could do before figuring it out. Lesson learned though!

The display prompt is for sure a common bug because it happened to me too.

I also died by going into the shadows because the hard 180 turn does not work while you are in the shadows apparently.

What I noticed is that this game assumes you know most of the genre tropes/mechanics already. I don't think they even explain that you can Inspect/Combine items. So this is probably not very friendly to new players in the genre. Luckily, the game has few mechanics so it should not be too much of a hurdle for new players.

I really liked the combat in the first one, I mean, it was serviceable. But it was too easy. I'm wondering if this was addressed.

The combat is still quite easy.

You also get the shotgun almost at the beginning, so it makes combat with multiple enemies much easier from the get go.

 

[ssringo]

What I noticed is that this game assumes you know most of the genre tropes/mechanics already. I don't think they even explain that you can Inspect/Combine items. So this is probably not very friendly to new players in the genre. Luckily, the game has few mechanics so it should not be too much of a hurdle for new players.

I'm okay with the game not completely spelling things out and they do "train" the player fairly early with simple puzzles before the game opens up too much. In my case I got tripped up because I was still in the mindset of physically attacking the environment due to the vases and shotgun puzzle.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

Classic survival horror returns for a new generation! Explore the decaying town of Villa Hess and harness Caroline's supernatural abilities to enter the nightmarish 'Other side' in your search for missing sister Anna.

Collect and modify an arsenal of improvised weapons to face off against lethal new enemies, from skittering bladed horrors to hulking armored abominations.

Forge connections between objects and the environment to solve intricately designed puzzles while peeling back the layers of a complex story full of twists and revelations.

 

[NeverYouMind]

It seems like this will be out on gog in a bit. I just bought the first one on gog.

November 6th according to publisher website...

 

[mèx]

I went over the 7/10 reviews to see what they say about tank controls, as a test of competency and game design literacy.

That said, there's a reason fixed camera angles and tank controls are considered relics of the past. I grew up playing the games Tormented Souls 2 pays homage to (Resident Evil, Silent Hill 3, Parasite Eve, Alone in the Dark), but moving around Villa Hess is frustrating even when there isn't a demon on your tail, with tight corridors and dead ends that make getting from one side of a building to the other unduly long-winded.

The combat in Tormented Souls is all but synonymous with Resident Evil's early years of infamously clunky tank controls and weapon handling. It's a style that has its charm, but it can be difficult to warm up to if you've never experienced it. No over-the-shoulder aiming, no strafing (mostly), no John Wick-style reloading, and dodging is all but nonexistent.

Two control styles are available – tank and modern – with the first option being as clunky as ever and the second making movement awkward whenever you switch from one camera position to another.

Controls offer both tank-style movement and modern analog. I absolutely despise tank controls. They often lead to cheap deaths when you bump into enemies or get lost in darkness after camera transitions.

Basically you can safely ignore the opinions of these supposedly expert game reviewers. If you don't see the value of tank controls in a slow paced fixed camera game then your opinion is basically worthless, no offence. You might like or dislike that, but that's another point completely.

 

[Nonehxc]

Tank controls never bothered me, and won't do now, it is what it is, and it was used in quite a few legends, of which I still have all of them from N64/Gamecube/PSX/PS2/Saturn/Dreamcast era just 3m above my head right now in the room above, all originally bought then.

If the game is good, IT IS GOOD. And after decades of lame games with 3D movement and crunky texture and mesh work I'm pretty sure a fixed camera survival horror with texture, colors and details cranked up to 11 because you don't have to render anything outside the camera view is just what the doctor ordered.

 

[Saint Boot Gaming]

That's a common complaint about the first game. Annoyingly, some of the puzzles can be interpreted in multiple ways, making things quite frustrating.

I must have missed a file somewhere because I was stumbling around for an hour before I went online to see that you have to walk counter clockwise around a gurney in order to fight an enemy to get a scalpel after the enemy wakes up and you fill it with buckshot.

 

[mèx]

I must have missed a file somewhere because I was stumbling around for an hour before I went online to see that you have to walk counter clockwise around a gurney in order to fight an enemy to get a scalpel after the enemy wakes up and you fill it with buckshot.

I think you missed the priest telling you what to do, he is in the room adjacent to that one.

But some other puzzles were too cryptic for me, I used this guide since it gives you hints instead of spoiling the solution immediately.

 

[Saint Boot Gaming]

I think you missed the priest telling you what to do, he is in the room adjacent to that one.

But some other puzzles were too cryptic for me, I used this guide since it gives you hints instead of spoiling the solution immediately.

yeah I saw him. The conversation was weird because he was acting like he did not see or hear it at all.

 

[Duchess]

I must have missed a file somewhere because I was stumbling around for an hour before I went online to see that you have to walk counter clockwise around a gurney in order to fight an enemy to get a scalpel after the enemy wakes up and you fill it with buckshot.

Exact same thing happened to me. I also ended up looking up how to do that one.

 

[HallsOfMidwich]

The combat is still quite easy.

You also get the shotgun almost at the beginning, so it makes combat with multiple enemies much easier from the get go.

Ah, I see. Well either way, I can't wait to get into this. The first game is such a gem to me.

 

[WellSheet]

Played a a couple of hours last night and was really enjoying the atmosphere, puzzles etc…but a ridiculous bug caused me to lose 30 minutes of progress.

For those curious:


So, in a fit of frustration, I purchased Cronos.

Will return to this tonight though.

 

[HallsOfMidwich]

Yeah, I want to play it badly, but I'll hold off until there's a patch or two.

 

[mèx]

Not sure why I insist on not saving when I have ten fucking recording tapes, lol. Died after ~1.5 hours because I'm an idiot.

Luckily this is a game where if you know what to do, it takes no time to catch up. I did in a dozen minutes what I did in 1.5 hour, so I caught up quickly.

 

[Nocty]

with Cronos in such recent muscle memory this comes as a nice surprise. I didn't even know the first game existed. Will grab both in the halloween sale

 

[TGO]

I went over the 7/10 reviews to see what they say about tank controls, as a test of competency and game design literacy.









Basically you can safely ignore the opinions of these supposedly expert game reviewers. If you don't see the value of tank controls in a slow paced fixed camera game then your opinion is basically worthless, no offence. You might like or dislike that, but that's another point completely.

They probably tried using Tank controls with the analogue stick, the default Tank on D-pad and 3d on Analogue is the way to go.
You don't use a analogue stick for tank (except for FPS games, because they're also tank controls)
People just can't get their head around using it when it's not in first person

 

[Gitaroo]

this game ang echoes of the living next week, what an amazing halloween

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

Not sure why I insist on not saving when I have ten fucking recording tapes, lol. Died after ~1.5 hours because I'm an idiot.

Luckily this is a game where if you know what to do, it takes no time to catch up. I did in a dozen minutes what I did in 1.5 hour, so I caught up quickly.

I go full inventory hoarder in these games. I'll have like ten of something but what if I need it laaateerrr...then never use it.

 

[ssringo]

this game ang echoes of the living next week, what an amazing halloween

Flesh Made Fear as well if you want that old school graphics and cheesiness. AND I DO!

 

[Reverend Speed]

I mean, if we're listing all the new fixed multicam titles this month, it's Fixed Cam-Tober...!

 

[IbizaPocholo]

Tormented Souls 2 reviewed by Vikki Blake on PC, also available on PlayStation and Xbox.

If you're nostalgic for the survival horror games of old, Tormented Souls 2 can provide a modern-looking trip down memory lane, with all the good and bad that brings. It has a tense atmosphere to soak up and some gorgeously spooky locations to explore, but you'll need to push through janky combat and a bit of backtracking to enjoy them. Its esoteric puzzles test your brainpower in a way that could sometimes frustrate, but will also delight anyone who missed smashing key items together to see what would happen. There's a lot to enjoy here, as well as plenty that perhaps should have remained in the past, but Tormented Souls 2 still manages to stand as an entertaining callback to the adventures that made contemporary horror gaming what it is.