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[DownLikeBCPowder]

I was patient and just picked up Assassin's Creed Mirage for 20 new on PS5. I'm finishing up Rebirth and still am supposed to be playing Undertale.. but after that hopefully give Mirage a try then loop back around to finish RE Village. I like some of the gameplay improvements in Village but the setting / story doesn't catch me as much as VII did.

 

[bender]

Finished The Last Guardian. Oddly enough I didn't have a completion trophy for my first completion back in 2016 but I think that's because I didn't watch the post credits. There are so many things to like about the game like the level design and animation and I have a lot of respect for Trico's design as it often feels like what having a pet is look, both good and bad. It often straddles the line between being an impressive companion AI that can at times be stubborn and frustrating, but it absolutely does get frustrating at times to the detriment of the game. The call backs to Ico and Shadow of Colossus are wonderful and the game does have some of those highs, but the frustration of Trico no following commands are him missing actions during scripted sections knock it down well below the other games in the Team Ico trilogy. I still had a really good time but I'll probably play Ico and Shadow of Colossus another half dozen times before I'd want to tackle The Last Guardian again.

 

[Corian33]

I was playing Midnight Suns, and while it’s a solid game, there is SO much talking and relationship management stuff between missions, it never ends.

I decided to give FFXVI a spin as I’ve had it since Christmas. Wow, that opening sequence was incredible! I know there are mixed feelings out there, but so far it’s exactly what I wanted.

Also, Helldivers 2. It’s awesome, go play it,

 

[Dazraell]

I finished Valiant Hearts: Coming Home on Switch. While the sequel looks and feels very much like Valiant Hearts game, it has some flaws that I feel make it much inferior in comparison to The Great War

The positive thing is that it doesn't feel like a port of the mobile game. Not at a first glance, at least. I noticed some of popups for QTE reminiscing mobile games and a lots of loading screens between chapters and episodes, but beside them, I wouldn't even thought it was once a mobile game. This does indeed feel exactly what you expect from Valiant Hearts, still keeping its signature artstyle, mixing platforming and puzzles with narrative seamlessly bouncing between charming humor and moments that are outright grim and depressing

One of my main gripes was length. The game is about twice shorter than the first game. Completing it took me about 3,5 hours. Relatively short length also impacts the story as similarly as in the first game, this one also has multiple playable characters and episodes were constantly swapping between different leads, never using full potential of each of the protagonists and giving enough time to get to know them. It reminded me a bit of The Walking Dead: 400 Days DLC conundrum which had a similar issue

Overall, I liked it. I didn't had high expectations, but I wish it could have been longer as the game's length was rather unsatisfying

As for what I'm currently playing - still making progress on FFVII Rebirth, slowly as I feel a bit burned out of huge open world games after finishing Oblivion with expansions last month and started Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II. I like it so far, feels like a step up from the first Dark Alliance game and improves a lot by adding larger maps, more opportunities for creating different builds and has more custom side content with unique locations encouraging to explore every corner.

 

[hemo memo]

Done with Immortals Fenyx Rising and the DLC.
Great game and DLC1 and 2 are great. 3rd one (The Lost Gods) was a big disappointment.
Overall a great experience.

 

[Gamerguy84]

FF7R.

 

[Duchess]

Dredge. Nice change of pace. Putting about in the boat and fishing is rather enjoyable. Good mini games, too.

 

[Fess]

Just accidently killed an NPC (boc). Last words were heartbreaking.

Fuck FromSoft. I can't go one session of playing their games witout being reminded of their flawed game design.

Are you on PC? You’re not alone, google on it, I think it’s possible to revive him using cheats.

 

[Fess]

Poor Horizon, just when Forbidden West is days away from coming out on PC I’ve started playing Elden Ring again. But I’ll make room for it somehow, it’s one of the games I look forward to try out on the new living room PC now that I retire my consoles.
Margit and Godrick is down, doing Castle Morne right now. Playing as an astrologer.
Masterpiece.

 

[Banjo64]

Just finished Kingdom’s of Amular this morning.

With the Switch winding down I’m trying to wind down my spending this year. I’m focussed on tackling my back log instead:

• Bioshock Remastered
• Portal 2
• Dragon’s Dogma Dark Arisen
• Hollow Knight
• Divinity 2: Original Sin
• Metroid Prime Remastered

Think I’ll start Bioshock next, should be a nice change of pace and read nothing but good things.

 

[Shake Your Rump]

Finished The Last Guardian. Oddly enough I didn't have a completion trophy for my first completion back in 2016 but I think that's because I didn't watch the post credits.

you... what? You finished one of the most emotional games ever created and just... shut it off once you got to the end?

 

[Fess]

Hollow Knight

I’m playing that too. It’s so so good. One of my all-time top 10s.
I actually like it more now than in my first playthrough. At the time I thought Ori was better but I think I just struggled too much with the difficulty on Hollow Knight.
This time, when I’ve gone through Elden Ring multiple times and accepted that every press of a button needs to be planned, I think the difficulty is fairly okay and the game is near perfection.

 

[drganon]

One piece odyssey.

 

[Bartski]

Outlast Trials. Going for all A+ and remaining badges. Met some really cool people while matchmaking and with the right team it's a blast.

 

[bender]

you... what? You finished one of the most emotional games ever created and just... shut it off once you got to the end?

No. The trophy doesn't pop until you get to the end of the post credit video and I remember that video. Towards the of that video is the shield buried in dirt which looks exactly like the start screen. I'm guessing that's where I shut it off and missed the last few seconds.

 

[ReBurn]

I've been playing Space Giraffe and trying to not have a seizure.

 

[Schmendrick]

I'm currently oogling "like a dragon - infinite wealth" since I really liked the first game, but ever since it became clear that they Indeed paywalled basic stuff like NG+ I kinda don't want to vote for them with my wallet anymore...

I'll probably wait for DD2 and just forget about LaD.

 

[Cynical_Aries]

Picked up Sekiro on PC with current sale. It's one of my favorites, but I haven't played it since PS4. After getting a gaming PC a few months ago. There are several games that I have to add to my PC library when the time is right.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Finally started Undertale even though I'm still working on the final VR challenges in Rebirth in-between.

This game is.. odd. It's interesting I will give it that. About an hour and a half through it. One thing I don't like is you have to press B to speed up dialogue but then you can only press A to progress the dialogue, so sometimes I find myself tapping "B, A, B, A" etc. Wish B or A just had combined functions for dialogue.

Also I would really like a run button but I can also see how that would sort of ruin the mood in some cases. Maybe.

 

[Housh]

Unicorn Overlord
Modern Warfare III
Tekken 8

 

[Fess]

Woah didn’t realize that Final Fantasy 7 Remake on PC has over a thousand mods. Installed a few nice ones

Level 40 astrologer on Elden Ring reached, slaying bosses almost too quickly now, I need to progress further to increase the challenge. Anybody know how they’ll implement the expansion? Will it be something you could trigger after Elden Beast before starting journey 2?

Hollow Knight, just when I thought it was fairly easy I met the mini boss accessed with the elegant key in soul sanctum that spawn flying things while teleporting around and throwing homing magic.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Level 40 astrologer on Elden Ring reached, slaying bosses almost too quickly now, I need to progress further to increase the challenge. Anybody know how they’ll implement the expansion? Will it be something you could trigger after Elden Beast before starting journey 2?

Rumor has it that the access point for the DLC is at Miquellas egg, after defeating Mogh, Lord of Blood at Moghwyn Palace.

 

[Fess]

Rumor has it that the access point for the DLC is at Miquellas egg, after defeating Mogh, Lord of Blood at Moghwyn Palace.

Ugh I hate that whole area, I’m usually just doing it to get Haligdrake +2, oh well

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Playing Shipbreakers, thinking the pace is too slow for me. Got Citizen Sleeper, also thinking about Deep Rock Galactic Survivor.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Ugh I hate that whole area, I’m usually just doing it to get Haligdrake +2, oh well

Same. I only use it to farm runes from the Albinaurics in the beginning of the area.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Bulletstorm Duke Nukem edition

Best version of Duke. Not only is Bulletstorm a very fun and creative fps, it's even more hilarious with Duke Nukem in it. It's good that he finally got a proper campaign to shoot through after the abysmal Duke Nukem Forever. Love the skill shot system and all the crazy ways you can kill your enemy. One of few fps-games I can play repeatedly without getting bored.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Finished Undertale.. lol wtf is this game.

Spoiler

I love the "twist" that exp is extermination points and your level is how disassociated you are basically ie easier to kill. Clever but I also killed everyone.. the ending didn't really end it felt like so I guess I got a bad ending and I should play again without murdering everyone? Shouldn't have listened to the flower. Also Toriel or whatever is the Queen then? Beginning makes more sense after finishing the game.

 

[foamdino]

Bouncing between Octopath Traveller 2 and Gran Blue Fantasy Relink right now.

Octopath Traveller 2 is superb, but the recommended levels for the quests are off by about 20 levels in my experience. It seems I'm playing it wrong as I don't have a guide walking me through every single boss fight. So when the quest says level 15 I am going out to grind at least 10 more levels before attempting it.

Looked up online what the feeling is and yeah, I am simply "playing it wrong" with the usual "you can complete that mission 5 levels lower if you do x,y,z".

I hate that attitude of, if you don't read a guide you're playing a game wrong.

Nothing on PC at the moment, will get back into BG3 when I'm away for summer. Eying up Unicorn Overlord and Dragon's Dogma 2, but too much spent on long RPGs this year already.

 

[killatopak]

Finished Undertale.. lol wtf is this game.

Spoiler

I love the "twist" that exp is extermination points and your level is how disassociated you are basically ie easier to kill. Clever but I also killed everyone.. the ending didn't really end it felt like so I guess I got a bad ending and I should play again without murdering everyone? Shouldn't have listened to the flower. Also Toriel or whatever is the Queen then? Beginning makes more sense after finishing the game.

Spoiler

You probably got the neutral ending. There’s three endings. Neutral, Pacifist, and Genocide. Pacifist is easy enough while genocide takes a bit of work. You literally have to kill everyone until there isn’t any random battles anymore.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Spoiler

You probably got the neutral ending. There’s three endings. Neutral, Pacifist, and Genocide. Pacifist is easy enough while genocide takes a bit of work. You literally have to kill everyone until there isn’t any random battles anymore.

So..

Spoiler

Are all the endings that abrupt/empty? Just felt.. inconclusive.

 

[killatopak]

So..

Spoiler

Are all the endings that abrupt/empty? Just felt.. inconclusive.

Spoiler

just the neutral one. Pacifist is the most conclusive but genocide will flip everything entirely. Every single path changes the dynamics from encounters, gameplay, dialogue and story. It’s like three entirely different stories yet they’re all connected. I think the most obvious divergence between them starts around the time you meet Papyrus depending on which path you chose. It’s honestly worth it to at least finish a pacifist run. Genocide is like hard mode. The later battles are truly something else. Like neutral and pacifist are like Strikers 1945 or Gradius while genocide is like Touhou. In terms of leap in difficulty.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Spoiler

just the neutral one. Pacifist is the most conclusive but genocide will flip everything entirely. Every single path changes the dynamics from encounters, gameplay, dialogue and story. It’s like three entirely different stories yet they’re all connected. I think the most obvious divergence between them starts around the time you meet Papyrus depending on which path you chose. It’s honestly worth it to at least finish a pacifist run. Genocide is like hard mode. The later battles are truly something else. Like neutral and pacifist are like Strikers 1945 or Gradius while genocide is like Touhou. In terms of leap in difficulty.

Cool, I will try that out next time I play through. Thanks for the intel! Solid and compelling game in its way.

 

[DirtyBast8rd]

I'm playing this really cool game about the sister of Rambo, who's really in to Chuck Norris movies. In this game she travels and get shipwrecked and then she proceeds to beat and shoot the crap out of about 350 men on a island. I was surprised she is named Croft as I remembered a game with a Croft about exploring caves and puzzling your way out of levels. But that's was oldskool. All joking aside, Tomb Raider 2013 should not be called Tomb Raider. Kinda fun action shooter but has nothing to do with Tomb Raider. Will try the sequel after this, hope its a bit more back to it's roots than the first one. Have the remaster trilogy to look forward to at least.

 

[tylrdiablos]

I finished Final Fantasy IX a few days ago. Enjoyed it! Very glad the enemies didn't have the same level scaling system as FF8. Liked the AP/Ability Points system... It made sense.
I liked the characters and story. Banging soundtrack too.

Did NOT like the Tetra Master card game. (I watched some YouTube tutorials because I couldn't figure out where some of those numbers where coming from.... Oh, they're random? Forget it then.)
The Chocobo mini games weren't much fun either but did provide some decent items.
Very happy that the modding community had whipped up some HD textures etc

Now I'm 3 hours into Final Fantasy x. The game seems to enjoy taking control away from the player and making them watch the characters chat/story progress. Hopefully there's a bit more freedom very soon.
The topless Yuna mod is tempting... Maybe when I've finished the main story and go back for the side quests/extras.

 

[Shake Your Rump]

Now I'm 3 hours into Final Fantasy x. The game seems to enjoy taking control away from the player and making them watch the characters chat/story progress. Hopefully there's a bit more freedom very soon.
The topless Yuna mod is tempting... Maybe when I've finished the main story and go back for the side quests/extras.

I have tried to get through this game several times since 2002. I always give up. My most recent time was just a few months ago. I got maybe halfway through, and as I said to my daughter, "I am cut-scened out".

So many cut-scenes. You run down what is essentially a tunnel, fight a couple fights, then sit back and watch cut-scenes or dialogue. Run down a little tunnel, more cut-scenes. The gameplay is constantly interrupted by cut-scenes and scripted sequences. This is far more egregious than the classic Final Fantasy XIII meme.

JRPGs are my #1 genre. I adore narrative-driven games. I want story. However, I also want to feel as though I am doing something. I never feel that way with FFX. The sphere grid has very light decision making. There are no choices to make during the story. The combat is brain-dead easy by swapping in whoever counters the enemy. No exploration. I never had that feeling like I am playing a game. It's just playing through a story. Maybe this was the first "walking simulator", and we just didn't realize it at the time?

So, play it if you really want to experience the story, but don't play it for the game.

 

[Feel Like I'm On 42]

you... what? You finished one of the most emotional games ever created and just... shut it off once you got to the end?

The ending to that was the last game that made me shed a tear

 

[Shake Your Rump]

The ending to that was the last game that made me shed a tear

I cried twice. Once when I played, and again when I watched my daughter play.

 

[OverHeat]

Not much this week waiting for Thursday for dragon dogma 2 and horizon 2 on PC

 

[JimmyRustler]

Elden Ring still.

Approaching the 100 hours mark. Level 104 atm. Just about to enter Lyendel.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Been playing a ton of games.

Earth Defense Force 5: What an amazing surprise this was. Never played an EDF game, they looked kinda cheap and even a bit jank to me.
What I found in this instead is a very fun game, full of content and charm and with one of the coolest multiplayer communities I've ever encountered.

Resident Evil 4 (GC): Game still holds up and plays like a dream. Loved replaying this one and only felt it was a bit lacking in the latest part of the game, which felt a bit rushed to me.

Resident Evil 4 Remake: After replaying the original one I decided to give the remake a go, specially since it was on sale.
Not a fan of remakes in general but I got to say I've really liked this one, loved how it changes the order of some scenes and how it changes some other parts. Having beaten the original game just a few weeks ago the remake still managed to feel fresh and even surprise me at times.

Onimusha Warlords (PS2): Another pretty cool surprise, since I never played an Onimusha game. Loved the mix of Resident Evil with samurai stuff, and the action, music and specially the visuals are all pretty cool. I only found it a bit lacking on the puzzles aspect, they are pretty easy to figure out.

Muramasa Rebirth: Playing this one on the Vita. Pretty cool but I still think Dragon's Crown is my favorite VW game. About Muramasa, loving the designs and the music.

Dragon's Dogma: Did one last BBI run before the release of the sequel as a Mystic Knight. Never played that vocation before and, while the parries are very fun, it felt like a mix of ideas they just threw in there. Still fun to play ofc, but no wonder they have removed it from the sequel in favor of what seems to be a more developed vocation (Mystic Spearhand). Also had the chance to beat the 2nd form of Daimon which I never bothered doing before. Man that was a tense and hard fight, good way of closing the DD1 experience.

 

[Roberts]

I think I'm burned out on games so I mostly spend my free time watching movies, but I still get back to Brotato once in a while and only have a handful of achievements left. I was travelling too, to a country that has xcloud (mine doesn't) and played some A Little to the Left and it plays a whole lot better with touch controls than a controller. Weird, but cool.

 

[tylrdiablos]

I cried twice. Once when I played, and again when I watched my daughter play.

I enjoyed TLG as well but holy Jebus was it frustrating at times. Battling with getting Trico to do what you wanted and those wonky controls did not help.
Everything else was great, the environment and character art, the music... but my god was it a test of patience at times.
(I played it in the first week it was released. Maybe it's been patched/improved since then.)

 

[Shake Your Rump]

I enjoyed TLG as well but holy Jebus was it frustrating at times. Battling with getting Trico to do what you wanted and those wonky controls did not help.
Everything else was great, the environment and character art, the music... but my god was it a test of patience at times.
(I played it in the first week it was released. Maybe it's been patched/improved since then.)

I no longer have a source, but the creature was designed to be unwieldy at first, like a real creature. As you play through, it becomes more responsive. I distinctly recall a turning point being when Trico overcomes the fear of the shields and bashes through to save you.

 

[SHA]

New tales from the Borderlands, WTF is wrong with this game, haven't thought games could go this bad.

 

[Valedix]

Helldivers 2 & Chivalry 2.

 

[Topher]

The Banishers. Not bad. Reminds me of Vampyr in a lot of ways (same dev). Combat isn't the best, but good story telling.

 

[hemo memo]

Finished Cocoon (Gamepass) yesterday. Great puzzler. It’s 30% off on Steam right now. Short but great.

 

[Mitsurux]

Unicorn Overlord (Switch) - I'm about 26 hours in and loving it. This game just hit at the right time for me. Really like all of the different units, building teams, customizing when skill are activated etc. Beautiful art style, great music. While the over all story is nothing all that special, I really enjoy the "little" story bits that pop up from time to time for different characters. There is something really satisfying about slowly taking over the map, planning what cites to liberate next etc.

 

[marjo]

Putting a lot of time into Balatro. I've unlocked and beat every deck except for the last one.

 

[adamsapple]

Just a little caption on the last couple of games I've played:

Tekken 8:
One of the best story modes in a fighting game. That final fight just keeps going on and on and on like a Family Guy sketch tho.

FFVII: Rebirth:
Excellent on-boarding. The game was is superb in the first half, but the gameplay loops becomes really rote in the second half. And the final stretch of the game has severe pacing problems like FFVII Remake.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden:
What a fucking surprise. This game was not on my radar at all. Great presentation, story etc. The game play loop can get tiring as the fights are extremely same-y through the entire game, but well worth a play through for the fantastic story.

Ys VIII:
Dumb/fun hack and slash RPG, great to play in between while listening to a podcast or catching up on youtube playlists and waiting for Dragon's Dogma 2 etc.