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[Phase]

I've been trying to get my Dad to play simple games from time to time and he'd never bite. Well last weekend he asked me about a golf game (he's an avid golfer), so I pulled out Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 which I used to love and started teaching him how to play. He is actually picking it up slowly but surely. Just have to get him to play a little more often so he doesn't forget what the buttons do lol.

Today I created him in the character creator and am trying to build the skills up so he can play with his own character sometime.

 

[stonedwal]

I have spent a couple of weeks thinking about the best way to tackle my participation in this thread, and I think a monthly update is the way to go. Didn't want to double up on what I'm doing with the 52 game challenge. Felt the best way was just to have a list in that thread and the detail in this thread.

My challenge:
No buying games or playing new games in 2021.

I do not expect to get to 31 December without having bought a new game, but I am sure as hell going to try. Last year I made it to July 2nd before I gave in - not long after Hardspace: Shipbreaker was released, because that game was right up my alley. For several years I've not really bought many games during the year, but gone all out on Black Friday/Holiday sales. I'm spending less but acquiring more. I figure this Black Friday I'll probably crack, and I'm okay with that. I'll definitely crack if the Breath of the Wild sequel hits.

January Update:
I was on leave for the first 11 days of January and made the most of that time. I usually start the year out strong and fall off as work kicks in. I tried to keep the momentum up as work began, but haven't really played much in the past two weeks. Instead I've been doing some major jobs around the home that have been needing attention for up to 3 years (i.e. when we moved in). Happy to say that the my wife's office/retro gaming room is now relatively organised and habitable. In the process of cleaning up that room, we decided to start selling some of our non-game gaming related items, like posters, store displays etc. the wife accumulated while working retail. I am going to sell/donate my old gaming magazines (mostly 1990s, with a few Edge and Retro Gamer issues thereafter). We are also looking at parting ways with some of the games we're not overly attached to. It's going to be tough and time consuming. I am expecting to have a lot of my time wasted, particularly with the likes of some of my N64 and GameCube stuff. There are some big work things coming up in March which are going to devour my free time, but I am hoping that I will bounce back after that.

There are three games in my 52 game challenge list that won't appear here because they are not part of my backlog, but were Game Pass games which came out prior to 1 January that I played through for easy achievement points for the Microsoft Rewards program's recent achievement challenge (accumulating points to eventually put towards a Series X).

Game #1: Noita (PC)
During the holidays, I usually get stuck into a single game and play others on the periphery. This year it was Noita. I'd grabbed it in early access and enjoyed it, but decided to wait for the full release (since the developer said it wasn't far away) before diving in fully. I'd been having 3-6 Noita runs per day since mid-December, gradually learning more about building wand combos and learning the layout. Every now and then you get a lucky run and dive a bit further. I gave myself the credit for finishing this one because I rolled credits, but it turns out that I got the worst possible ending. The game is packed to the brim with secrets and other clandestine shit that affects the end of the game. I've been going back to it and messing around with mods.

Game #2: Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales (PS4)
Wasn't going to bother to wait to play this on the PS5, but I will revisit it when I eventually acquire one. It was enjoyable for what it was - I am not one of those people who is bothered about games being short.

Game #3: Bee Simulator (PS4)
I thought I'd be a bit sneaky and run through a few games I knew were short. My wife wanted this one (loves bees, apparently) and I spotted it for a ridiculous price on Play-Asia last year and grabbed it for her. It's a bit silly, particularly the dancing and combat. Arguably meant for a younger audience, but I didn't find it outright bad.

Game #4: Assassin's Creed: Freedom Cry (PS4)
I'd installed this onto my PS4 a long time ago. I dug Black Flag, but I didn't really enjoy this. I think having played Rogue before this kind of killed Adewale's character for me.

Game #5: Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot (PS4)
People said this was criminally short on release, but I really enjoyed it (probably because I got it cheap). Didn't outstay its welcome. I had some tracking issues - my office is quite narrow which can pose some challenges for VR, but I had a better time of it after switching chairs. I haven't invested any significant time into the new Wolfenstein series but I know the gist of it. Gave me hope for someone doing a deeper VR mech game in the future.

Game #6: Bravo Team (PS4)
This game got utterly savaged on release, but I have long been a fan of light gun games so it was up my alley. Shooting and control was decent using the Aim controller. Story was pretty pedestrian. Got a little annoyed with some hit tracking issues and had the cover system freak out a few times. Not a great game, but enjoyed my time with it.

Game #7: Toe-Jam & Earl: Back in the Groove (PC)
I loved the original game, and this was meant to be a return to that. In some ways I felt it maybe stuck a little too closely to the original and didn't trot out enough new stuff. I admit I harbor a little bitterness because I got 90% of the way through on my first run and died after getting stun-locked. Immediately started a new game and finished it out of spite.

Game #8: Watch Dogs: Legion (PS4)
I really wanted this one to be good, but I knew Ubisoft would wimp out on making the game a bit harder. The problem feels like that just about every character can do everything, so it limits the need to seek out new operatives. I hated that the recruiting system used the same missions over and over - this gets solved with the deep profiler, thankfully. Once I had a team with a single member of each faction, a construction worker and a spy, I stuck with them for the rest of the game. The systems the game runs for its NPCs are really interesting, but it all ends up feeling a bit hollow and shallow. I played with permadeath on but only lost three operatives.

In Progress:
Halo 2 Anniversary (Xbox One) - I didn't really like the original Halo 2 after the first couple of levels, and I've just got through those. Zero attachment to the story on this game so I'll blow right through.

Planned:
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (N64/3DS) - the oldest game in my backlog. The day the N64 version came out was the day I finished high school. It was my graduation present. I've started it plenty of times, and get the shits with having to play through the Deku stuff. Farthest I have made it is to the Zora stuff. I am going to go with the 3DS version on the hope that some of the QOL changes can help get me over the line.

 

[Sidney Prescott]

I've been trying to get my Dad to play simple games from time to time and he'd never bite. Well last weekend he asked me about a golf game (he's an avid golfer), so I pulled out Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 which I used to love and started teaching him how to play. He is actually picking it up slowly but surely. Just have to get him to play a little more often so he doesn't forget what the buttons do lol.

Today I created him in the character creator and am trying to build the skills up so he can play with his own character sometime.

That's awesome. Always great to have parents that enjoy the same hobby as you. My Dad was actually the reason I got in to Gaming, I always thought that was pretty cool. Right from a young age he would introduce me to Nintendo 64, GameCube, PS1 and so on. I only realised later how lucky of a kid I was. I feel like I had a rare childhood, most parents see it as a waste of time.

I honestly wonder if I would have got interested in Games if not for my Dad. It definitely spawned my obsession. Kept me out of trouble, too.

 

[Soodanim]

I’m done with Borderlands 2, that’s it. I love the games, love the worlds and I enjoy loot, but I’m done. Did all I wanted there.

Currently sat here wondering what it is about Dishonored 2 that takes so long to load on SSD, it feels slower than GTA5. This won’t take me long though, I won’t go through a second time just yet. I’ll save it for some time in the future. Might do Death of the Outsider if it hasn’t already scratched the itch.

 

[mekes]

13 Sentinels is pretty good. The story is fun. Right when I think Im getting a grasp, another surprise, and another surprise. It just doesn’t stop!

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Mastered (all Achievements) SMB1 on NES. Writeup coming later today.

Cheers!

 

[Soodanim]

It turns out that if you stop for dinner in the middle of Dishonored 2 on PC and your controller turns off, it forgets it ever existed. Which is why I spent the majority of my evening playing Just Cause 3’s jetpack DLC instead.

I can see why people would think this invalidates a lot of the game, although I went in with a finished game save. The jetpack has a wide turning circle, but the OP machine gun and triple rocket launcher (you’re fully upgraded before long) tears through anything you like up with. I still enjoy the mindless fun of destroying camps and using upgraded tethers on everything, so those 2 attack helicopters just get their heads banged together. I haven’t gotten very far yet, but it looks like I’ve got some more toys coming up to play with, including a lightning gun.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

First month of 2021 is complete. Stats so far:

(List of Participants)

SPECIAL THANKS to InfiniteCombo @Sidney Prescott mekes Phase Ascend WakeTheWolf DelireMan7 Banjo64 Goro Majima ROMhack SCB3 Harts316 Mr Hyde Ryuji Goda Perrott fart town usa Bakkus Soodanim EDMIX teezzy Guilty_AI Mhmmm 2077 Rillania stonedwal stn jufonuk Aurelius Shifty1897 (and I'm probably missing some others; sorry!) for giving the thread so much gasoline early in the year. Off to a great start.

Hope erryone is having fun swapping stories and I hope you are enjoying the challenge of avoiding New Hotness.

January I kept myself busy with Daioujou and Dance Dance Revolution as usual, mixing in some Death Stranding and Old School Musical.

12-month Stats from the 2020 thread

 

[jufonuk]

still trudging along. I think I’m halfway into Horace now. It’s challenging and really fun.

taking it by by bit.

due to Covid still being a thing always good to try and save money.

might as well act like Im living lean by spending lean


But oops I did it again. Purchased a load of games increased my backlog and well shoooot I had a load of Wii and Wii-U games I didn’t get around to getting to the end credits.
I need to break the cycle.

but having said that.

So buying Doom eternal switch is ok as it wasn’t released in 2021 ?

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

still trudging along. I think I’m halfway into Horace now. It’s challenging and really fun.

taking it by by bit.

So buying Doom eternal switch is ok as it wasn’t released in 2021 ?

If you already own it on other platforms, sure.

But the idea is to avoid buying/playing new-to-you games during the calendar year. I'm not the referee though, just a fellow participant. How you want to grapple w the challenge is up to you.

 

[ROMhack]

Let's start a petition to change DunDunDunpachi 's name to DanceDanceDunpachi

 

[jufonuk]

Let's start a petition to change DunDunDunpachi 's name to DanceDanceDunpachi

Or a doodoodoo a daadaadaa.

 

[Banjo64]

Not posted in this thread for a while but managed to complete Streets of Rage 4 for the first time. Never played this type of arcade beat ‘em up. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Not going to go through the game again, but, if I had more time it’d definitely be a game I could see myself replaying. Music and art style is banging, tight gameplay too.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Let's start a petition to change DunDunDunpachi 's name to DanceDanceDunpachi

 

[jufonuk]

If you already own it on other platforms, sure.

But the idea is to avoid buying/playing new-to-you games during the calendar year. I'm not the referee though, just a fellow participant. How you want to grapple w the challenge is up to you.

What about if I own the game in my mind ?

 

[InfiniteCombo]

I have spent a couple of weeks thinking about the best way to tackle my participation in this thread, and I think a monthly update is the way to go. Didn't want to double up on what I'm doing with the 52 game challenge. Felt the best way was just to have a list in that thread and the detail in this thread.

Game #4: Assassin's Creed: Freedom Cry (PS4)
I'd installed this onto my PS4 a long time ago. I dug Black Flag, but I didn't really enjoy this. I think having played Rogue before this kind of killed Adewale's character for me.

Welcome to the thread! And you can participate any way you want. Pretty chill crew here.

I agree on Assassin's Creed -- For the entire series up to that point I had been rooting for the Assassins, but Rogue made me rethink some things. I think the biggest losers from Rogue were Achilles and (like you said) Adewale. I mean to be honest my opinion of Achilles already wasn't very high from his original appearance in Assassin's Creed III, but Rogue shattered it almost completely.

The Adewale thing is a pity because I did very much enjoy Freedom Cry and its premise. But this goes to show you, some people can "lose" their way later on. Also,

Spoiler: AC3 and AC4 lore spoilers

Adewale's downfall in Rogue was the final undoing of Edward Kenway's legacy. I mean, his son already turned Templar...

I found this song from the soundtrack is just absolutely beautiful:

First month of 2021 is complete. Stats so far:

(List of Participants)

SPECIAL THANKS to InfiniteCombo @Sidney Prescott mekes Phase Ascend WakeTheWolf DelireMan7 Banjo64 Goro Majima ROMhack SCB3 Harts316 Mr Hyde Ryuji Goda Perrott fart town usa Bakkus Soodanim EDMIX teezzy Guilty_AI Mhmmm 2077 Rillania stonedwal stn jufonuk Aurelius Shifty1897 (and I'm probably missing some others; sorry!) for giving the thread so much gasoline early in the year. Off to a great start.

Hope erryone is having fun swapping stories and I hope you are enjoying the challenge of avoiding New Hotness.

January I kept myself busy with Daioujou and Dance Dance Revolution as usual, mixing in some Death Stranding and Old School Musical.

12-month Stats from the 2020 thread

Biggest shout outs to our fearless ring leader DunDunDunpachi and to the best thread on NeoGAF. Dun, I looked up the game you mentioned, and it's a shmup. Holy shit. So -- Ikagura and Radiant Silvergun are in my backlog. Although I consider myself pretty skilled at many video game genres, I think my skill hits a wall with shmups. Prepare for my posts on those to be less celebratory and successful than my posts so far, and instead being filled with tears of sadness I very much love the concept of shmups, I honestly just wish I was better at them. Maybe 2021 is finally my time to git gud!

From me personally, also shout outs to everyone else that has participated in the thread, with a special shout out to @Sidney Prescott -- pretty cool cat. And also fart town usa who is a bigger Resident Evil 1 fan than even I am -- and I thought it impossible to find such a person! Ha!

Cheers to all, and as always, happy gaming!

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Looking forward to your Mario write up btw InfiniteCombo

I've always loved the Mario series, especially pushing the games to their limits (speedrunning levels, finding secrets/glitches, etc) since childhood. Always a treat to hear in-depth impressions on the series from another fan.

Shmups take a bit of patience to get hooked. The goal is to enjoy the process (like all genres), and I happen to enjoy the blissful grind of practicing runs and watching myself slowly improve. I'd liken my shmup sessions to practicing a Guitar Hero song on the highest difficulty, or playing a puzzle game on top speed against a good opponent, or perfecting combos in a fighting game Training mode. Shmups demand your attention, but also only take ~20 minutes to beat start to finish. A 10 minute shmup session is like a stiff jolt of caffeine while 2 hours of Death Stranding sometimes make me go "huh? Did I accomplish anything?"

And for what it's worth, I do not consider myself "skilled" at any videogame genres. Shmups are for everyone to enjoy, as long as you don't expect to clear it quickly like the average Activision shooter or indie Metroidvania #12,559.

In the last few years I began feeling like a lot of videogames are purposely made to be disposable, designed to be set aside and never replayed after the sequel comes out. Shmups feel like that opposite of that, a handcrafted demon-puzzle that takes years to unravel, so I gravitated toward the genre.

What about if I own the game in my mind ?

Don't Ask Don't Tell

 

[fart town usa]

Biggest shout outs to our fearless ring leader DunDunDunpachi and to the best thread on NeoGAF. Dun, I looked up the game you mentioned, and it's a shmup. Holy shit. So -- Ikagura and Radiant Silvergun are in my backlog. Although I consider myself pretty skilled at many video game genres, I think my skill hits a wall with shmups. Prepare for my posts on those to be less celebratory and successful than my posts so far, and instead being filled with tears of sadness I very much love the concept of shmups, I honestly just wish I was better at them. Maybe 2021 is finally my time to git gud!

From me personally, also shout outs to everyone else that has participated in the thread, with a special shout out to @Sidney Prescott -- pretty cool cat. And also fart town usa who is a bigger Resident Evil 1 fan than even I am -- and I thought it impossible to find such a person! Ha!

Cheers to all, and as always, happy gaming!

Ha thanks brother, just played through the BIOHAZARD Saturn release on Saturday night. Damn good time, didn't die once.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Ha thanks brother, just played through the BIOHAZARD Saturn release on Saturday night. Damn good time, didn't die once.

I may or may not be moderately salty that I sold my Saturn copy of Biohazard several years ago. Time to buy it back. And yes, better to get a copy of Biohazard, not of Resident Evil -- Resident Evil for the Saturn goes for crazy stupid prices these days. (As does anything for the Saturn, really.)

Nice job on not dying! Did you play as Chris or Jill? For all versions of RE1 I actually really prefer to play as Chris, but the down side of the Chris campaign is that the homeboy on your avatar doesn't show up, and his lines in Jill's campaign are *chef's kiss*. But even if I prefer to play as Chris, when I sit down and play Resident Evil I play both campaigns; they're short enough I can get them both done in less than 2 hours.

This speedrun shows how much people just love RE1:

 

[Sidney Prescott]

I’m done with Borderlands 2, that’s it. I love the games, love the worlds and I enjoy loot, but I’m done. Did all I wanted there.

Currently sat here wondering what it is about Dishonored 2 that takes so long to load on SSD, it feels slower than GTA5. This won’t take me long though, I won’t go through a second time just yet. I’ll save it for some time in the future. Might do Death of the Outsider if it hasn’t already scratched the itch.

I don't blame you on Borderlands 2. I felt the same way. It's a fun game, but there is a LOT to do. Especially if you have all the DLC's in the Handsome Collection. I finished the main questline in the game, and there still felt like there was so much to do. I might go back to it eventually.

You eventually just get fed up of doing similar quests after a while. It doesn't matter how fun the game is, or how brilliant the world Pandora is. I don't feel there is enough variety.

 

[teezzy]

Heroes of Might and MAgic 5 is kind of the shit

Game has really opened up, the further I'vee played. I'm glad I stuck with it instead of just getting frustrated with some of the mechanics early on. They all have their purpose.

Gotta love a game with this much depth that can just be played with the mouse alone

 

[Soodanim]

I don't blame you on Borderlands 2. I felt the same way. It's a fun game, but there is a LOT to do. Especially if you have all the DLC's in the Handsome Collection. I finished the main questline in the game, and there still felt like there was so much to do. I might go back to it eventually.

You eventually just get fed up of doing similar quests after a while. It doesn't matter how fun the game is, or how brilliant the world Pandora is. I don't feel there is enough variety.

Strangely it wasn’t being sent back through the same area for the 5th time, what tipped me over the edge was UVHM (NG+2) and its changes that made me actively realise I was no longer having fun. The game introduces changes to both the enemy types and the game mechanics by introducing stronger enemies (both attack and defence) and making slag much more important for doing damage. The reality was getting downed in seconds from early game enemies and not being able to kill anything quickly enough to get a second wind. This is after fighting some bosses again on NG+1 (and soloing a raid boss) for good gear.

I had the same experience with Nioh, now I think about it. I like the idea of the high end gear, but the game itself throws a wall at you I’m not willing to climb.

If you do have all the DLC and fancy taking another swing at it, some of the smaller DLCs are a couple hours each at a stretch so you could knock one out if you were at a loose end one afternoon. For a longer DLC, I do recommend Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep. Especially if you play, or at least know anything about DnD. The DLCs don’t always change too much about the base formula, but they all do something a bit different in terms of the story/theme.

 

[fart town usa]

I may or may not be moderately salty that I sold my Saturn copy of Biohazard several years ago. Time to buy it back. And yes, better to get a copy of Biohazard, not of Resident Evil -- Resident Evil for the Saturn goes for crazy stupid prices these days. (As does anything for the Saturn, really.)

Nice job on not dying! Did you play as Chris or Jill? For all versions of RE1 I actually really prefer to play as Chris, but the down side of the Chris campaign is that the homeboy on your avatar doesn't show up, and his lines in Jill's campaign are *chef's kiss*. But even if I prefer to play as Chris, when I sit down and play Resident Evil I play both campaigns; they're short enough I can get them both done in less than 2 hours.

This speedrun shows how much people just love RE1:

I always play as Jill, broken shotgun route because I love the more obscure scenes with Barry, the major one being Jill listening to Barry and Wesker from behind the door in the guard house. I thankfully have the NA release too, picked it up a few years ago for probably $25. It's crazy expensive now but yea, the BIOHAZARD version is still affordable. Got my copy last year, complete copy from Japan for probably less than $30.

With Chris though, I have been playing his scenario more to see what other cutscenes are with Rebecca. If you avoid the basement safe room, you'll encounter her next to Richard and she comes off as much more confident and independent. Pretty neat. I love the various options in the first game, every time I play I try to find something new. Even though I know it doesn't exist, I'm convinced that there is a brand new way to play that will trigger events I've never seen, ha. Keeps me on my toes, I just love the way the OG RE makes me think.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

I always play as Jill, broken shotgun route because I love the more obscure scenes with Barry, the major one being Jill listening to Barry and Wesker from behind the door in the guard house. I thankfully have the NA release too, picked it up a few years ago for probably $25. It's crazy expensive now but yea, the BIOHAZARD version is still affordable. Got my copy last year, complete copy from Japan for probably less than $30.

With Chris though, I have been playing his scenario more to see what other cutscenes are with Rebecca. If you avoid the basement safe room, you'll encounter her next to Richard and she comes off as much more confident and independent. Pretty neat. I love the various options in the first game, every time I play I try to find something new. Even though I know it doesn't exist, I'm convinced that there is a brand new way to play that will trigger events I've never seen, ha. Keeps me on my toes, I just love the way the OG RE makes me think.

Yup, I plan to rebuy Bio1 for Saturn -- with spine. I'm a sucker for those spines, haha. Having gotten into the retro scene more, not only is Japanese stuff cheaper than American stuff, but quite often I find that Japanese people in general keep their shit in better condition. And besides, quite often (maybe always?) they got their manuals in full color, whereas we got our shit in black and white here in the US. Anyway, I digress...

As a big fan of Resident Evil 0 (yes, there are dozens of us), I do acknowledge that one of its bigger sins is messing with the continuity/lore. After having gone through all of the events of RE0, how can Rebecca show up in Chris's scenario initially and be such a noob!? But like you said, if you meet her not at the storage room but next to Richard, she's slightly less noob-ish... but still a noob. Doesn't make sense. (I think the OG RE1's game director said that Rebecca's noob-ishness was what his staff wanted, even though he himself didn't really want a character like that. I'd have to dig up the interview from somewhere...)

Last time I played I actually forgot what condition makes her show up at Plant 42 and help you with the V-JOLT. But like you said, that's what I love about this game, all of the little details that can change a playthrough from game to game.

 

[fart town usa]

Yup, I plan to rebuy Bio1 for Saturn -- with spine. I'm a sucker for those spines, haha. Having gotten into the retro scene more, not only is Japanese stuff cheaper than American stuff, but quite often I find that Japanese people in general keep their shit in better condition. And besides, quite often (maybe always?) they got their manuals in full color, whereas we got our shit in black and white here in the US. Anyway, I digress...

As a big fan of Resident Evil 0 (yes, there are dozens of us), I do acknowledge that one of its bigger sins is messing with the continuity/lore. After having gone through all of the events of RE0, how can Rebecca show up in Chris's scenario initially and be such a noob!? But like you said, if you meet her not at the storage room but next to Richard, she's slightly less noob-ish... but still a noob. Doesn't make sense. (I think the OG RE1's game director said that Rebecca's noob-ishness was what his staff wanted, even though he himself didn't really want a character like that. I'd have to dig up the interview from somewhere...)

Last time I played I actually forgot what condition makes her show up at Plant 42 and help you with the V-JOLT. But like you said, that's what I love about this game, all of the little details that can change a playthrough from game to game.

I remember reading that too somewhere. I need to play Zero more. I like it, but have only played through it twice I think. Man it's gorgeous though. In terms of the quality of visuals, it's definitely the best looking classic style RE game.

 

[Perrott]

My progress so far:

(PS3) Catherine - Jan. 10th
(PS3) Demon's Souls - Jan. 13th
(PS3) Max Payne 3 - Jan. 14th
(PS4) Wreckfest - Jan. 18th
(PS3) Silent Hill - Jan. 19th
(PC) Tangram Deluxe - Jan. 22nd
(PC) Into the Bridge - Jan. 23rd

Currently playing:

(PS4) Deadlight: Director's Cut
(PC) Diablo 2
(PC) Final Fantasy 7
(PC) Highway Blossoms
(PC) Kentucky Route Zero
(PS4) Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince

Plus some neverending games such as Age of Empires 2, DriveClub, Fall Guys, Nuclear Throne or Super Hexagon.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

My progress so far:
(PS3) Silent Hill - Jan. 19th

Is that OG Silent Hill from PS1? If so... is this your first time playing it? What did you think?

Being a huge Resident Evil fan and horror fan in general, I've always wanted to get into Silent Hill, but I always saw it as the Pepsi to Resident Evil's Coca Cola (i.e., the "weak" competition). It didn't help that my first Silent Hill game was Homecoming, which only reinforced that bias. But from everything I've read, Silent Hills 2 and 3 are close to masterpieces, so I want to check them out, but want to start with the original.

 

[DelireMan7]

My progress so far:

(PS3) Catherine - Jan. 10th
(PS3) Demon's Souls - Jan. 13th
(PS3) Max Payne 3 - Jan. 14th
(PS4) Wreckfest - Jan. 18th
(PS3) Silent Hill - Jan. 19th
(PC) Tangram Deluxe - Jan. 22nd
(PC) Into the Bridge - Jan. 23rd

Wow that's some progress !

With my 2 games done, I am impressed!

Also curious about Silent Hill. Not really into horror but some of the old horror games interest me.

 

[Soodanim]

Is that OG Silent Hill from PS1? If so... is this your first time playing it? What did you think?

Being a huge Resident Evil fan and horror fan in general, I've always wanted to get into Silent Hill, but I always saw it as the Pepsi to Resident Evil's Coca Cola (i.e., the "weak" competition). It didn't help that my first Silent Hill game was Homecoming, which only reinforced that bias. But from everything I've read, Silent Hills 2 and 3 are close to masterpieces, so I want to check them out, but want to start with the original.

I haven’t played it in years, but being an RE fan that played Silent Hill 1 at the time of release it was more along the lines of it being much scarier/creepier/freakier than RE. I never got into it as much, but I never saw it as inferior. I need to play 2 again, because I remember getting the hidden ending but I don’t remember anything else from the game. Then 3, after that.

 

[Perrott]

Is that OG Silent Hill from PS1? If so... is this your first time playing it? What did you think?

Being a huge Resident Evil fan and horror fan in general, I've always wanted to get into Silent Hill, but I always saw it as the Pepsi to Resident Evil's Coca Cola (i.e., the "weak" competition). It didn't help that my first Silent Hill game was Homecoming, which only reinforced that bias. But from everything I've read, Silent Hills 2 and 3 are close to masterpieces, so I want to check them out, but want to start with the original.

Yes! It is the original Silent Hill, which was ported to the PS3 as a PS1 Classic, and it was my first time playing it indeed. So, what are my thoughts about it? Well, I loved it! And I think that it is one of the best and most ambitious games of all time, considering the hardware it was released on.

The open world aspect of the game it's brilliantly realized: the town of Silent Hill feels huge, it's filled with secrets and "sidequests", and rewards exploration, but at the same time knows how to guide you so you never feel lost or like you don't know what you are supposed to do next. The combat and movement feel a lot better than in the OG Resident Evil games and the combination of both third-person and fixed cameras work great. The puzzles are mindblowing.

The game's 3D environments and character models look incredibly well, same as the super high quality CG cinematics. It remains a pleasant title to look at even by today's standards. Both the art direction and the soundtrack are fucking nuts, 10/10.

The only thing that I didn't like is that the story, which I think it's really cool, kind of goes entirely to waste due to the abrupt, terrible ending this game has.

Overall, I feel like this is a game that pushed a lot of boundaries at the time and it's filled with creativity. Apart from that, it holds up pretty well, so I encourage you to play it as well!

Wow that's some progress !

With my 2 games done, I am impressed!

Also curious about Silent Hill. Not really into horror but some of the old horror games interest me.

Thanks! Above you have my impressions regarding Silent Hill, but long story short, you should play it too!

 

[Sidney Prescott]

Wow that's some progress !

With my 2 games done, I am impressed!

Also curious about Silent Hill. Not really into horror but some of the old horror games interest me.

Silent Hill is fantastic. 1-3 are very good games, and then the series goes downhill sadly. Silent Hill 2 is probably the best and most refined of the three. I think what Silent Hill does better than Resident Evil is ambiance. It is a lot more unsettling.

All of the older survival horror games worth playing, despite their age.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

+1. Current backlog completed count: 9.

Super Mario Bros. (NES, via emulator)

The game. The myth. The legend. With all due respect to the likes of Space Invaders, Pacman, and Tetris, this is the direct (or indirect) reason we're all here.

35 years after this game was released, it still plays like a charm. I can't believe how much stuff they got right on this try -- Mario's running speed, his jump height, his general handling, all feel fantastic. Controls are super tight and practically flawless. The level design is master-class. I do have to say though -- that although all levels are truly fantastic, and each and every single level is worth playing, this game is not quite like Super Mario World, or (even to a greater extent) Super Mario Bros. 3; you should play every level and not warp; you'll gain a fair amount from the experience. With SMB3 and SMW, though, if you don't play all the levels, you're proactively missing something key about those games. But anyway, also the visuals -- they look great to me even now, but I can't even tell what someone coming from Atari or something like that felt like. Minds must've been blown everywhere.


For such an old game, there are so many secrets and tricks, including the (arguably) most iconic original trick of them all (hell, even my mom knows about this):

In order to get all Achievements, I spent a decent amount of focused time with this game, and learned some new stuff. Which of course means, cue "InfiniteCombo's corner, or: his musings on the game that no one else cares about" (ha!)

• Cheep Cheep swimming patterns: In the water worlds, "Cheep Cheep" (the swimming fish) swim in two variations: (1) a straight line, which I always knew about; but (2) also in small up-and-down arcs, which I didn't know. I found out the hard way, too: I was little Mario trying to camp out because some Bloopers were hot on my trail. Cheep Cheep was coming by, and I thought it was gonna take a straight pattern. Nope, swam right into me. Speaking of Bloopers...
• Blooper swimming patterns: Also in the water worlds, the "Blooper" (white squid-like enemy) actually swim in three patterns: (1) They come towards you when you face them (which I knew and thought they all did this), but also (2) they swim in the same direction you're facing, so if you're swimming forward, they're swimming away from you, and if you're swimming away or facing backwards, they're swimming towards you; and (3) a third one, which applies when you're still on the ground trying to avoid them: they will actually not run away from you, but actually hover over you the entire time.
• "Raining Cheep Cheep" patterns: In levels immediately following water levels, you'll get "raining" Cheep Cheep that rain from under you in an arc pattern. When and how many Cheep Cheeps spawn seem to be a bit of RNG. But their arcs are definitely not RNG. It seems to me that their arcs are programmed so that the Cheep Cheep are right about where you're going to be (not where you are when that particular Cheep Cheep spawns), given your speed and general movement. If you're running fast, the Cheep Cheep spawn and arcs will try to "anticipate" where you're going to be. So you can actually use this to fake them out quite a bit. If you're running fast and then pump the brakes on Mario, you'll see the Cheep Cheep flying way past you because they will had been flying towards your anticipated point when they spawned. I think the picture below shows what I'm talking about. I had been running pretty fast but slowed down to kill that Koopa Troopa so they were way ahead of me trying to anticipate me:

• Hammer Bros leaving their posts: I didn't know this, but Hammer Brothers can start chasing you if you camp out long enough. I thought they just stayed in place all the time. Speaking of Hammer Bros...
• Hammer Bro invincibility: A particular Hammer Bro, in World 8-3, seems to be immune to death by Koopa Troopa shell. Mofo is untouchable. I will have to capture it on its own picture, but right now this will serve as illustration. So it's not the guy right in the picture, but the one before him; the Koopa Troopa shell goes right through him, every single damn time. I did it 4 times and all 4 times the shell went through him. WTF.

• Coin Block mechanic: So I sorta knew about this but didn't know details. When you hit a multi-coin block, it seems that an in-game timer starts and you can only get coins within this time limit. If you get right under the block (usually as Super Mario), and you time your jumps right, then you can get up to something like 15 coins. Here's the catch, and why I said "just right" -- if you jump too fast, Mario will still hit the block, but something in the game (a bug? a feature? I don't know) will make it so that no coin is actually received on that particular block hit. So if you spam A too fast, you'll actually end up getting less coins than if you time it just right.

Anyway, what a blast playing through this game. I play it at least once a year, maybe I'll have to bump it up to 2x a year because it's so damn fun.

In the future, I'll do a writeup on the Super Mario All-Stars (SNES) version of this game. Which, compared to this original NES version, sucks ass. (I'm not usually hyperbolic like that, but man, a lot of things about that game -- from the "updated graphics" that are too busy, the messed up physics, etc -- are just... wrong). If you're going to play Super Mario Bros., the NES version is the definitive one. And make sure you're holding B (the dash button) the entire time, that's the most fun way to play

 

[InfiniteCombo]

By the way, is there an easy way to make GIFs? I realized that a lot of these dorky-ass concepts I'm trying to explain would be much more easily illustrated with a short GIF instead of a still picture. I have video recording capabilities in all forms (whether it's emulators, or a capture box for original hardware, or Steam, etc). So it's just a matter of making a GIF from a small video segment. I'm willing (and actually prefer) to pay for mainstream, secure, legit software, if need be.

 

[Ryuji Goda]

Been playing through the God of War games since last year. Just finished Ascension (PS3). I really liked it; great combat and level design. Also the graphics are amazing for a PS3 game.

This is how I rank them so far. I still have God of War 3 (Remastered on PS4) to go.

1. God of War (PS4)
2. God of War: Ghost of Sparta
3. God of War: Ascension
4. God of War: Chains of Olympus
5. God of War 2
6. God of War 1

So yeah, next up is GOW3 Remastered.

After this I'm planning on playing through all the Resident Evils (RE1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, RE1 Remake, RE0, Revelations 1 & 2).

 

[jufonuk]

Played a bit more Horace last night kept getting lost and going back to the same parts.

Even something as simple as getting to another door means I have to negotiate a load of instant death traps. So after a while I wanted to take a break.

bit of a grey area maybe but.
I got Dauntless on F2P couldn’t find the rise demo as I missed out because I am silly.
played the around two hours.

Dauntless ain’t bad. Yeah it feels like monster Hunter light. Without the mad grinding more action orientated. Which I’m guessing means it is more shallow.

but for me that’s perfect as a like the taking monsters down right away aspect with the MH version I had on the 3DS I didn’t get anywherefelt like a slog.

I understand for some players of the game that’s the appeal. But for me the t isn’t.

being a tight ass may see what other F2P switch games there are.

I don’t want Pay to win.

rather not pay anything.

 

[Ascend]

+1. Current backlog completed count: 9.

9 games already dang. I unfortunately don't have to the time to complete so many games. And additionally, I tend to like long games lol... I'll try and focus on one game per month or so. I really can't do more than that.

I did play some more Pokemon Sword yesterday. It was mostly simply catching some more Pokemon. Even though I don't plan on completing the Pokedex, I do want to catch as many as possible in each area as I play through the game. Knowing myself, if I go past the areas, I'll never do it again xD So I try to do it immediately.
The area I just completed was a bit of a nightmare, because the hail makes catching Pokemon more difficult. It felt a lot longer than it really was. I thought I played for like two hours, but, it was just over half an hour xD

 

[InfiniteCombo]

9 games already dang. I unfortunately don't have to the time to complete so many games. And additionally, I tend to like long games lol... I'll try and focus on one game per month or so. I really can't do more than that.

I did play some more Pokemon Sword yesterday. It was mostly simply catching some more Pokemon. Even though I don't plan on completing the Pokedex, I do want to catch as many as possible in each area as I play through the game. Knowing myself, if I go past the areas, I'll never do it again xD So I try to do it immediately.
The area I just completed was a bit of a nightmare, because the hail makes catching Pokemon more difficult. It felt a lot longer than it really was. I thought I played for like two hours, but, it was just over half an hour xD

Ha ha. Well on the one hand, they're retro games that can be completed quickly. But I guess on the other hand, I've been "Mastering" (getting the Platinum) for some of these games, and some of the Achievements can take a decent amount of time, since I have to hone a particular gameplay skill to achieve it. But I'm already fairly familiar with the gameplay in these games, so I'm technically cheating a bit.

But, the most important thing -- enjoy games at your pace. This is not a comparison or a contest; we're all having a great time here. In fact, I had to Nope-out of the 52-game thread simply because there's no humanly way I can possibly play 52 video games in a year, the way I like to play them. If I tried to play 52 games in one year, for the sake of 52 games -- at that point, it would not be fine. I really like to get deep into game mechanics and do a lot of figuring out of my own. And I don't have that kind of time -- between my demanding job, and dating, and friends and family, and several other hobbies I have -- actually doesn't leave much time for video games.

I'm extra curious about your post because I've never played a single Pokemon game, ever It's the case that the concept very much still does not appeal to me, but I'm always curious as to what others' experiences are with those games.

Been playing through the God of War games since last year. Just finished Ascension (PS3). I really liked it; great combat and level design. Also the graphics are amazing for a PS3 game.

This is how I rank them so far. I still have God of War 3 (Remastered on PS4) to go.

1. God of War (PS4)
2. God of War: Ghost of Sparta
3. God of War: Ascension
4. God of War: Chains of Olympus
5. God of War 2
6. God of War 1

So yeah, next up is GOW3 Remastered.

After this I'm planning on playing through all the Resident Evils (RE1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, RE1 Remake, RE0, Revelations 1 & 2).

Oh man, God of War 2 that low? Huh, it's been a while, but I remember it being my favorite one out of the original "trilogy." (I didn't play the PS2 original, played the remaster on PS3). In any case I agree with God of War 2018 at number 1, it was an amazing experience. (Screw those Valkyrie fights though...)

Will this be your first time playing through those Resident Evil games? And I see you didn't list the remakes of 2 and 3, but from your avatar I can see you might have already played Remake 3...

(PS: I'm a huge Yakuza fan, and obviously dig your username )

 

[EDMIX]

Because I'm currently working on my college degree and a independent art project, I have less time this year then prior so it sounds like missing the PS5 launch (and all other attempts to get one lol) has lead me to just wait till summer or even fall this year as looking at my backlog, its pretty large and with such limited time, makes no sense for me to buy a new system or new games for quite a bit. I'll keep my list loose as I tend to start and stop titles randomly based on how long they might be.

Finished Uncharted 2 on PS4 Pro about a week or 2 ago (reminded of just how amazing that game was when it released)
Started Uncharted 3
Will replay Oblivion next
The Order 1886
Assassins Creed 2
Assassins Creed Brotherhood
Assassins Creed Revelations
Persona 5
Far Cry 5
Watchdogs 2
Yakuza 3
Call Of Duty WWII
Call Of Duty Modern Warfare reboot

That should put me thru April or May. Trying to put some time between RPGs lol

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Assassins Creed 2
Assassins Creed Brotherhood
Assassins Creed Revelations

I know this series gets a lot of hate around certain parts of this forum, but I had a lot of fun playing these games. I really enjoyed all 3 of them, especially Brotherhood.

Welcome to the club!

 

[EDMIX]

I know this series gets a lot of hate around certain parts of this forum, but I had a lot of fun playing these games. I really enjoyed all 3 of them, especially Brotherhood.

Welcome to the club!

True. I stopped playing the series after AC 1 and always wanted to jump back in and many kept telling me how good those sets of games are so a few years ago I got them all used and planned to run thru them one day.

 

[Majmun]

Not really interested in any 2021 release so far, so I’m going to try this. I’ve been playing backlog games for a while now. Finished Control, Rayman Legends and Dark Souls III before finishing Mass Effect Andromeda two days ago. Next up is Uncharted: Lost Legacy

Started to play Lost Legacy today actually. The game looks amazing.

After Lost Legacy I’m going to play Jak II and III.

So I’m in. Let’s see how far I’ll make it..

 

[Ryuji Goda]

Ha ha. Well on the one hand, they're retro games that can be completed quickly. But I guess on the other hand, I've been "Mastering" (getting the Platinum) for some of these games, and some of the Achievements can take a decent amount of time, since I have to hone a particular gameplay skill to achieve it. But I'm already fairly familiar with the gameplay in these games, so I'm technically cheating a bit.

But, the most important thing -- enjoy games at your pace. This is not a comparison or a contest; we're all having a great time here. In fact, I had to Nope-out of the 52-game thread simply because there's no humanly way I can possibly play 52 video games in a year, the way I like to play them. If I tried to play 52 games in one year, for the sake of 52 games -- at that point, it would not be fine. I really like to get deep into game mechanics and do a lot of figuring out of my own. And I don't have that kind of time -- between my demanding job, and dating, and friends and family, and several other hobbies I have -- actually doesn't leave much time for video games.

I'm extra curious about your post because I've never played a single Pokemon game, ever It's the case that the concept very much still does not appeal to me, but I'm always curious as to what others' experiences are with those games.




Oh man, God of War 2 that low? Huh, it's been a while, but I remember it being my favorite one out of the original "trilogy." (I didn't play the PS2 original, played the remaster on PS3). In any case I agree with God of War 2018 at number 1, it was an amazing experience. (Screw those Valkyrie fights though...)

Will this be your first time playing through those Resident Evil games? And I see you didn't list the remakes of 2 and 3, but from your avatar I can see you might have already played Remake 3...

(PS: I'm a huge Yakuza fan, and obviously dig your username )

Yeah, I wasn't feeling GOW 1 and 2 that much. Too many frustrating fights I suppose. I still enjoyed them though.

I have played RE1, 2 and 3 on the ps1 back in the day when I was a teenager. The rest is all new to me. Including RE2make and RE3make, I forgot to add those lol

P.s. Yakuza

 

[Ryuji Goda]

Because I'm currently working on my college degree and a independent art project, I have less time this year then prior so it sounds like missing the PS5 launch (and all other attempts to get one lol) has lead me to just wait till summer or even fall this year as looking at my backlog, its pretty large and with such limited time, makes no sense for me to buy a new system or new games for quite a bit. I'll keep my list loose as I tend to start and stop titles randomly based on how long they might be.

Finished Uncharted 2 on PS4 Pro about a week or 2 ago (reminded of just how amazing that game was when it released)
Started Uncharted 3
Will replay Oblivion next
The Order 1886
Assassins Creed 2
Assassins Creed Brotherhood
Assassins Creed Revelations
Persona 5
Far Cry 5
Watchdogs 2
Yakuza 3
Call Of Duty WWII
Call Of Duty Modern Warfare reboot

That should put me thru April or May. Trying to put some time between RPGs lol

Did you like the Order 1886? I love that game, mostly due to the presentation

 

[CloudShiner]

I'd love to sign up to this! I mean, for the first time in a while I have a real short wishlist on psprices. And I have plenty of unfinished and (gulp) unstarted games.

Problems are that psplus dumps three games every month, at least one of which I usually want to play and the past couple of months it's been more than that, and the psplus collection on top of that. I know they're not purchased as such, but still adding to the library.

And there are a couple of games that I'm not sure I would be able to resist, especially Hitman 3, Disco Elysium and Ghost of Tsushima if they go on decent sales.

But overall, it's going to be a stricter year for me (and of course a cheaper one!)

NB what really doesn't help is that Stardew Valley 1.5 is imminent on console, and it's a given that's going to claim it's usual couple of hundred hours out of my life.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

I'd love to sign up to this! I mean, for the first time in a while I have a real short wishlist on psprices. And I have plenty of unfinished and (gulp) unstarted games.

Problems are that psplus dumps three games every month, at least one of which I usually want to play and the past couple of months it's been more than that, and the psplus collection on top of that. I know they're not purchased as such, but still adding to the library.

And there are a couple of games that I'm not sure I would be able to resist, especially Hitman 3, Disco Elysium and Ghost of Tsushima if they go on decent sales.

But overall, it's going to be a stricter year for me (and of course a cheaper one!)

NB what really doesn't help is that Stardew Valley 1.5 is imminent on console, and it's a given that's going to claim it's usual couple of hundred hours out of my life.

Even if you don't do a flawless run this year, shoot for one of the "lesser" tiers like 5 old games for every 1 new game, or completing 1 backlog game per month.

The spirit of the thread is to play less of the New Hotness. Instead, play and replay what you already own. Sounds like you're already attempting to do that, so good luck.

 

[Sidney Prescott]

I think I'm almost finished with the main questline of Sleeping Dogs. I'm actually quite sad it's nearly over, this game was so good. The storyline has been super engrossing. I'll definitely be coming back to this game to clean-up any extra stuff I missed. It was worth visiting again, and I'm so glad I took the time to do it.

The next game I'm planning to play is Heavy Rain. I got it free with Detroit Become Human on PS Plus, but never played the PS4 version. I did finish it on PS3, so pretty much know what to expect. I have a feeling it might have aged a bit badly, but I remember the storyline was dark and riveting.

 

[stn]

Is it worth playing Heavy Rain if I got the plot twist spoiled? Always wanted to give it a shot but was discouraged because I know who the antagonist is.

 

[Soodanim]

Pray for me my brothers and sisters, for I need your strength. I keep finding mods for games like Dark Souls and they threaten the very cause for which this thread stands.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Pray for me my brothers and sisters, for I need your strength. I keep finding mods for games like Dark Souls and they threaten the very cause for which this thread stands.

Mods (i.e. replaying a game you already own) seem very much in line with the spirit of the thread.

 

[Sidney Prescott]

Is it worth playing Heavy Rain if I got the plot twist spoiled? Always wanted to give it a shot but was discouraged because I know who the antagonist is.

Well I'm replaying it despite knowing the plot twist, so that must say something. I would say go for it. It might not be as impactful knowing all the twists and turns, but it still is a great experience. Still a lot of choices you can make on your own playthrough to keep it interesting.

Maybe wait for a sale if you don't already own it. It's quite an old game now, a lot different to Detroit: Become Human. Not as graphically or technically impressive.