What are you currently playing?

[Dalisclock]

As someone who played Eastward on Switch. I can easily recommend the game. The game is a nice homage to Zelda and earthbound, and it has a great story. Gameplay is hit or miss IMO but I had some fun with it.

I mean, I was sold when I saw the Pixel art(which looks fucking amazing) and hearing it compared to Earthbound. And since we're never gonna get a legal, official port of Mother 3 (because people hate money, I guess) then I'll have to make due supporting other games like Earthbound.

 

[Chimpzy]

I mean, I was sold when I saw the Pixel art(which looks fucking amazing) and hearing it compared to Earthbound. And since we're never gonna get a legal, official port of Mother 3 (because people hate money, I guess) then I'll have to make due supporting other games like Earthbound.

Well, if it's games like Earthbound you want, then Eastward is imo your best bet. The gameplay is pretty different, but the overall 'vibe' is the closest I've seen so far.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Started The Messenger. I know all about the twist in gameplay later on, which is kinda why I got the game in the first place (love metroidvania), although whether you like the first half or the second half better seems to be a point of contention. So far so good. Game's surprisingly easier than I thought would be. Breezed the first boss and first few areas. Plot is kind of a send-up of that overly theatrical yet comically simplified era of storytelling in gaming ("Oh no, it's the Demon King!"). More than a bit meta but without feeling lazy or super indulgent like Guacamelee 2.

 

[Fallen Soldier]

Resident Evil Revelations 2 for Switch

 

[NerfedFalcon]

Started The Messenger. I know all about the twist in gameplay later on, which is kinda why I got the game in the first place (love metroidvania), although whether you like the first half or the second half better seems to be a point of contention. So far so good. Game's surprisingly easier than I thought would be. Breezed the first boss and first few areas. Plot is kind of a send-up of that overly theatrical yet comically simplified era of storytelling in gaming ("Oh no, it's the Demon King!"). More than a bit meta but without feeling lazy or super indulgent like Guacamelee 2.

Is it weird if I say that I liked both parts of The Messenger about the same? It's just a really great game.

OT: Currently working on the Frozen world (it's in the trailers) in KH3. Definitely not one of the better ones for story, since it basically follows the plot of the movie except Sora isn't there for most of it so nothing that happens makes any sense unless you have seen it (admittedly, who hasn't?). But the snowy mountain looks really good and it isn't a total pain to navigate like some parts of the Tangled world. Still enjoying it and still learning how to get the most out of all the stuff I have to work with.

 

[laggyteabag]

I partook in the 3 months of gamepass for £1 deal, so I played some Back 4 Blood yesterday with a friend.

Im not sure how much of a lifespan the game really has. I played the game for about 3 hours, and completed the first act of 4 (though the final act appears to be just a single "level"?), and I felt like I had my fill by the end.

The level was far too long, and the environment never really changed. Not to mention that there was already backtracking in the first level, which wasn't a great sign. The gunplay was good, but after you find a weapon that works for you, you aren't really encouraged to swap it out for another, because of how the weapon upgrade system works.

Some of the new enemies are also just annoying, like one that can just lock you in place indefinitely, but can do so from range, without any kind of hint as to where the attack came from.

I think the game is overall superior to L4D, which is a game that I find to be just too simplistic, but I feel like the level variety (or lack thereof) is going to seriously hamper this game's replayability/longevity.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Eastward
Picked this up recently. It's a Zelda-like in terms of moment to moment gameplay, but in every other respect, it is clearly inspired by Earthbound/Mother. It's most noticeable in the spritework, which is top notch btw, as every npc has an unique sprite and animations. But it's also in the writing, how the world is built, the ncps characterized, and the way it can turn from humorous whimsy into genuinely dark and tragic moments. Anyway, good game, and I'm enjoying my time with it, but it is very linear. Which I don't mind, but it's a little annoying here. There are tons of points of no return that lock you out of backtracking and exploring, and lots of chests, npc interactions and even abilities are missable. You basically have to get everything on your first go, and its often not clear what is a side area and what is progress.

I've tried to get into this game, but Jesus it just won't stop talking. I had to sit through maybe 5 minutes of two kids talking about an arcade game, by way of speech bubbles no less. Granted I'm not the biggest fan of dialoge through text that you manually have to click/scroll through, but plenty of games like Undertale, Hollow Knight, and Zelda know how to keep it brief. Eastward really doesn't.

 

[Chimpzy]

I've tried to get into this game, but Jesus it just won't stop talking. I had to sit through maybe 5 minutes of two kids talking about an arcade game, by way of speech bubbles no less. Granted I'm not the biggest fan of dialoge through text that you manually have to click/scroll through, but plenty of games like Undertale, Hollow Knight, and Zelda know how to keep it brief. Eastward really doesn't.

You're not wrong. I overall like the game, but I agree it has a frustrating habit of railroading then locking you into a long sequence of cutscenes.

 

[Drathnoxis]

So a while back I watched SGF try out Blasphemous for an hour and wasn't really impressed with the game, but after seeing @Dalisclock going on about it for a month(not actually reading the posts, cause spoilers) I thought I'd give it a try.

After trying it myself for about an hour I have to ask, um, is this game actually good? It just feels kind of boring. The combat is kind of slow and you don't have many options for moves to start with, the visuals are muddy, and there isn't any music, only atmospheric wasteland sounds so it feels really dull. Also, the characters all constantly spout a blend of nouns and ye olde talk so it's difficult to understand what anybody is saying. I suppose the cutscene artstyle is pretty unique looking, but unless you are really into excessive gore the game doesn't have a lot going for it visually.

Is it worth giving it a further chance? Is it likely to grow on me at all?

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Is it weird if I say that I liked both parts of The Messenger about the same? It's just a really great game.

Well I asked around specifically if it was a good MV before buying it and the consensus was that I should get it just for being a great game. Really enjoying it so far.

 

[gorfias]

"What have borders given us? Books? No, I'll have to destroy them all"-solo wing crimson 1(probably)

Very pretty looking game! I gotta put some time into Ace Combat 7 on Steam but have doing mostly Oculus VR with my nephew when I have time to game. Last thing I did wasn't a game. It was a movie watching collaboration tool, Big Screen.

 

[Dalisclock]

So a while back I watched SGF try out Blasphemous for an hour and wasn't really impressed with the game, but after seeing @Dalisclock going on about it for a month(not actually reading the posts, cause spoilers) I thought I'd give it a try.

After trying it myself for about an hour I have to ask, um, is this game actually good? It just feels kind of boring. The combat is kind of slow and you don't have many options for moves to start with, the visuals are muddy, and there isn't any music, only atmospheric wasteland sounds so it feels really dull. Also, the characters all constantly spout a blend of nouns and ye olde talk so it's difficult to understand what anybody is saying. I suppose the cutscene artstyle is pretty unique looking, but unless you are really into excessive gore the game doesn't have a lot going for it visually.

Is it worth giving it a further chance? Is it likely to grow on me at all?

For me, Blasmphous is carried a lot by it's art style and setting, in that it has a very specific Gothic Spanish Catholic fantasy setting with a lot of Baroque art inspiration and it is quite committed to that(as opposed to a lot of other games where it's basically yet another dark European fantasy that rarely pings any particular European culture). The gameplay itself is fine and it feels much like a Latter castlevania game, but if you aren't digging the whole vibe and setting of the game, you probably aren't going to be won over by it anytime soon. Apparently the NG+ has some challenge modes(like you have to take a permeant debuff to do NG+) but you'd have to be into the game enough to actually finish it to even see that.

 

[Dalisclock]

Very pretty looking game! I gotta put some time into Ace Combat 7 on Steam but have doing mostly Oculus VR with my nephew when I have time to game. Last thing I did wasn't a game. It was a movie watching collaboration tool, Big Screen.

Ace Combat 7 is a lot of fun if you're in the mood for an air combat game that's not particularly realistic. Just try not to think too much about the story because it just gets dumber the more you dig into it, but the missions are well put together. And no, you don't have to have played any of the previous ones to enjoy it, you'll just get some extra context if you have.

 

[gorfias]

Ace Combat 7 is a lot of fun if you're in the mood for an air combat game that's not particularly realistic. Just try not to think too much about the story because it just gets dumber the more you dig into it, but the missions are well put together. And no, you don't have to have played any of the previous ones to enjoy it, you'll just get some extra context if you have.

Got this too on Steam.
Day off today, going to get some of this in.

 

[Dalisclock]

Got this too on Steam.
Day off today, going to get some of this in.

I haven't played it though I know a lot of Ace Combat fans don't like it. At one point I looked for it on steam to see if it was cheap and if so I'd give it a shot (because I'd finished most of the other AC games). Apparently it got delisted, so I didn't need to bother.

 

[gorfias]

I haven't played it though I know a lot of Ace Combat fans don't like it. At one point I looked for it on steam to see if it was cheap and if so I'd give it a shot (because I'd finished most of the other AC games). Apparently it got delisted, so I didn't need to bother.

Yikes. What happens to a Steam game that gets delisted? I wonder if I ever want to add it to another computer, will I be able to do so? If not, I better get through this before retiring this PC (I try to build a new one every 6 years. Current Ryzen 7-1700 is 4 years old.)

 

[Dalisclock]

Yikes. What happens to a Steam game that gets delisted? I wonder if I ever want to add it to another computer, will I be able to do so? If not, I better get through this before retiring this PC (I try to build a new one every 6 years. Current Ryzen 7-1700 is 4 years old.)

I think as long as you've got your stream account you can access it. You just can't purchase it anymore.

You'd have to contact steam to be sure though. I'm guessing as I haven't had that issue yet.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

Tried out the Elden Ring network test. Only had time for a half hour or so but it’s decidedly carrying the mantle of Dark Souls 3 in terms of feeling, although with a few shakeups involving gameplay mechanics in everything from combat to traversal.

In combat, I’m missing the kicking function that you could do with forward+R1, unless it’s mapped as a hidden control somewhere else. Also, after checking the wiki it seems parrying is now an Ashes of War skill that needs to be applied to shields, so hmm…that’s why I couldn’t get it to work, but interesting. Movement feels pretty similar to DS3 and the only noticeable carry-overs from Sekiro seem to be the crouch for stealth and jump. They have each been folded into a more Soulsy feel though vs the more action-oriented implementation in Sekiro. You certainly feel more nimble and light on your feet in Sekiro, but that’s appropriate playing as a shinobi vs a more standard human here.

There has been criticism towards animation quality and while again, it feels more Soulsy than what’s in Sekiro, it’s still a noticeable improvement over DS3. The riposte/critical hits feel more impactful and satisfying here, and aren’t as finicky to pull off (probably because of the increased focus on stealth). Hit responses are better too, with what appears to be more detailed feedback on weapon collision points with enemies. It’s also nice being able to fall from greater heights, but it’s struck a middle ground between previous Souls games and Sekiro which makes sense.

I’ll have more impressions after playing more in the open world and actually tackling some bosses and finding the steed.

 

[gorfias]

Just finished Vader Immortal Ep. 3/3.

Very fun VR experience.

You play as "Smuggler" and have a light saber. You have some very weak force powers. At one point you can use a Storm Trooper rifle and after that, a mounted laser canon.

I found his weak force powers to be frustrating. I'd force grip things and they'd barely budge. Star Killer would have destroyed this character with ease. That he gets to face Vader at the end? Sort of like Harry Potter facing off Voldermort. (The movie came across as silly, especially in light of Dumbldore's near defeat at Voldermort's hands. Book readers understand what actually happen, which is awesome!) They correctly convey that you're just supposed to try to live long enough to accomplish a thing at this place with some stuff.

A terrific 3-5 hour experience that cost me on sales, $17.50. They have ocasional sales on Oculus.com for $15 for all 3 chapters.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Got to the top of the mountain in The Messenger. The platforming is getting trickier and the checkpoints farther apart, but still manageable overall. First boss to give me any trouble was Queen of Quills.

Something I don't get at all is the penalty for dying, which sends you back to the last checkpoint and spawns an imp that steals any coins (time shards, whatever) you collect for a minute before disappearing. What's the point? He's not deducting anything from you, and will probably be long gone by the time you reach your death spot. All it really does is prevent you from farming the stuff you already got along the way the first time. Except if you want to farm it - and why would you, it's everywhere - you can just hang tight for a minute (or 30 seconds if you have the upgrade), wait for the imp to leave and THEN start the trek back to where you left off. As a mechanic it just feels like it changes absolutely nothing about how you play and has zero effect.