What are you currently playing?

Drathnoxis

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At this point, rouge-lites have beyond overstayed their welcome. Definitely not my thing, and will continue to steer clear of them.
No, they definitely haven't. We need more roguelikes, if anything. More that really push the proc-gen envelope, because too many will do slotted together rooms with random enemies and that just doesn't cut it.


So, Dredge is the casual version of Sunless Sea ?
That's what the 3MR and Yathzee made it sound like.

Also I need to get back to sunless sea. My poor little boat has been waiting for......4 years for me to come back and take her out for a spin.
I'm really torn about Sunless Sea. On the one hand it has fantastic writing and atmosphere, but on the other the gameplay consists of watching your little boat very slowly travel the same routes again and again.
 

Dalisclock

Making lemons combustible again
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I'm really torn about Sunless Sea. On the one hand it has fantastic writing and atmosphere, but on the other the gameplay consists of watching your little boat very slowly travel the same routes again and again.
Also the well written story bits, which are arguably the best part. I tried playing Fallen London and I love the writing but couldn't stand the fact you were nagged to buy more action tokens or whatever.

What I really hated about SS is that you can't store any of your stuff in a warehouse at the docks, so everything you own is carried in your cargo hold at all times. I mean, seriously, I can go to a fancy party with demons and haggle over the price of my umarked crates full of souls but allowing me to rent storage space at the docks is a step too far apparently. I can even have my own mansion later on and still, nope, gonna keep my stuff on the boat, holding up valuable storage space I could be using for food or corpses or corpses to be sold to the food factory.
 
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BrawlMan

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No, they definitely haven't. We need more roguelikes, if anything. More that really push the proc-gen envelope, because too many will do slotted together rooms with random enemies and that just doesn't cut it.
There's a billion rouge-likes at this point. Unless you plan on sitting your ass down, and playing every single one of them. Not in the cards for me, and most others. Not every game's entire mechanic has to be a campaign that's completely randomized. That can get annoying, even in a great game. Now, if it's an optional mode a la Mr. X's Nightmare, then we're talking. We can use more gallery shooters like Bot Vice and Wild Guns. Give games like that an optional rouge-like mode, then we'll talk.
 

XsjadoBlaydette

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Hey now, there's Sunless Skies too...where you can do exactly the same but iiiinnn spaaaaaaaace!

Which is actually legitimately kinda cool, sorry, I own both games but have to be in very patient mood for them. Love their writing and style, very much adore steampunk horror, but I've a habit of just getting plain old lost and losing patience. 🫣
 
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Dalisclock

Making lemons combustible again
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Hey now, there's Sunless Skies too...where you can do exactly the same but iiiinnn spaaaaaaaace!

Which is actually legitimately kinda cool, sorry, I own both games but have to be in very patient mood for them. Love their writing and style, adore steampunk horror, but I've a habit of getting lost. 🫣
Tim Curry was disappointed to find out that Space had also been corrupted by Capitalism. Also Eldritch Horrors, but mostly Capitalism.
 

Drathnoxis

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Bloodborne is done! Finished NG+ at level 101 in about 90 hours. Platinum in fact. I actually didn't think I would ever be getting a platinum trophy on any game because I really don't care about achievements at all, but Bloodborne's achievements are basically just "beat every boss" and if you've done that you've done everything. The only thing I had to go out of my way for was to do Cainhurst again on NG+ because I missed two badges for buying weapons, and that took like half an hour because you don't actually need to fight anything except bosses in Bloodborne if you know where to run to.

The Queen of the chalice dungeons was kind of a let down. She was fine, I guess, but after some truly BS bosses like Loran Darkbeast, Defiled Amygdala, and Headless Bloodletting Beast she was pretty much a pushover. Same with the Moon Presence. Honestly Gehrman was harder than MP. Really, I think it should almost be an endurance gauntlet and you should need to beat them back to back. But seriously, some of those chalice dungeon bosses were ridiculous. Just too big, so that half the fight is struggling with the camera to figure out where you are in relation to the boss, and you can't lock on because then you can't actually hit them reliably. And of course their attack hitboxes fill half the arena so you need perfectly timed dodges, which would be a lot easier if you could actually see what you are doing! Loran Darkbeast was especially ridiculous in this regard because it's just constantly jumping everywhere and doing it's AOE attack. I think I beat campaign Amygdala on my first try but defiled took over 2 hours because I'd reliably get her down to 1/3 health and then die immediately once she tears her arms off. I'm still confused why they made the chalice dungeons randomized. I guess maybe someone will want to play randomized dungeons forever, but I just don't see the point. After running through them all once I'm pretty sure I'd seen every room dozens of times. There isn't actually any reason to do the root chalices except for their own sake, and I personally feel complete without doing them. It's not like the game even tracks if you've done the additional rites or anything. Definitely the oddest part of the game, and something I didn't expect from Soulsborne. They were ok, though. I did enjoy the challenge, even if there were a bit too many dungeons.

Anyway, Bloodborne was pretty great. Honestly, I might even rank it above Dark Souls.
Next is Nier: Automata.
 

Drathnoxis

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There's a billion rouge-likes at this point. Unless you plan on sitting your ass down, and playing every single one of them. Not in the cards for me, and most others. Not every game's entire mechanic has to be a campaign that's completely randomized. That can get annoying, even in a great game. Now, if it's an optional mode a la Mr. X's Nightmare, then we're talking. We can use more gallery shooters like Bot Vice and Wild Guns. Give games like that an optional rouge-like mode, then we'll talk.
Obviously I'm not going to play them all, or even most of them. Heck, you know Sturgeon's Law.
Not every game needs it, but just like, most of them.
Hey now, there's Sunless Skies too...where you can do exactly the same but iiiinnn spaaaaaaaace!

Which is actually legitimately kinda cool, sorry, I own both games but have to be in very patient mood for them. Love their writing and style, very much adore steampunk horror, but I've a habit of just getting plain old lost and losing patience. 🫣
I never got around to Sunless Skies for the aforementioned reason of the gameplay absolutely sucking. Maybe I should one day, though.
 
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NerfedFalcon

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Next is Nier: Automata.
I probably should get back to that at some point, but at the moment I've settled on continuing God of War 4, since I received Ragnarok as a Christmas present and still haven't even started it. Wanted to get through 4 first to have the proper story context, but I ended up playing through a lot of other stuff instead. Pizza Tower, Hi-Fi Rush, Yakuza Ishin, Ultrakill, Resident Evil 4, and I'm only just now getting back to it. So with that on my mind, Automata's getting pushed back a little more. Always the way of things.

Anyway, I made it through Alfheim and returned to Midgard to continue the journey up the Mountain. Kratos and Boy had a big argument, and it's important to note that the game doesn't always come down on one side or the other. It's pretty well-balanced between the two, they both have reasonable points and unreasonable moments, and they've both changed a little, even this early into the story. I like that, it's well-handled. Had some trouble with puzzles, but the answer always ended up being 'you're blind', and I don't think it's even really a criticism of the game for bad signposting, just of me for not paying enough attention.
 

BrawlMan

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Heck, you know Sturgeon's Law.
Not every game needs it, but just like, most of them.
Even among 10%, most games don't need them.

I don't think it's even really a criticism of the game for bad signposting, just of me for not paying enough attention.
I noticed a problem with these puzzles, but especially in Ragnarok, the solution or where you're supposed to do/go next gets blended into the background. In GoW4, this is rarely an issue most of the time. Rag on the other hand, suffers a lot more from this on a first run.
 

Absent

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The boring one
I'm really torn about Sunless Sea. On the one hand it has fantastic writing and atmosphere, but on the other the gameplay consists of watching your little boat very slowly travel the same routes again and again.
That is not my experience at all. When I played it, the gameplay consisted in watching my little boat very quickly getting sunk again and again.
 

Johnny Novgorod

Bebop Man
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NG+ on Assisted difficulty on RE4R. Going for Sprinter, Frugalist, Minimalist trophies. Two and a half hours in and I'm just past the castle water hall. Frankly playing on the easiest difficulty but not being allowed to heal makes the game harder than standard in some areas. It basically means you can only take a couple of hits before you die. Health barely regenerates past red but that's outside of fights, I think. And in certain sections it's practically impossible to NOT get hit. So now I got to discover just how awful, awful, awful the villa fight with Luis is. The camera is not your friend in closed quarters here.

NG+ on Pro I'm looking forward to because of the Infinite Rocket Launcher.

Standard and Hardcore with S+ rankings are going to be a nightmare.
 

CriticalGaming

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I have been playing a LOT of Path of Exile. A fantastic but utterly batshit complicated diablo clone. Everything i play i hurt my brain a little bit.
 
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hanselthecaretaker

My flask is half full
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Bloodborne is done! Finished NG+ at level 101 in about 90 hours. Platinum in fact. I actually didn't think I would ever be getting a platinum trophy on any game because I really don't care about achievements at all, but Bloodborne's achievements are basically just "beat every boss" and if you've done that you've done everything. The only thing I had to go out of my way for was to do Cainhurst again on NG+ because I missed two badges for buying weapons, and that took like half an hour because you don't actually need to fight anything except bosses in Bloodborne if you know where to run to.

The Queen of the chalice dungeons was kind of a let down. She was fine, I guess, but after some truly BS bosses like Loran Darkbeast, Defiled Amygdala, and Headless Bloodletting Beast she was pretty much a pushover. Same with the Moon Presence. Honestly Gehrman was harder than MP. Really, I think it should almost be an endurance gauntlet and you should need to beat them back to back. But seriously, some of those chalice dungeon bosses were ridiculous. Just too big, so that half the fight is struggling with the camera to figure out where you are in relation to the boss, and you can't lock on because then you can't actually hit them reliably. And of course their attack hitboxes fill half the arena so you need perfectly timed dodges, which would be a lot easier if you could actually see what you are doing! Loran Darkbeast was especially ridiculous in this regard because it's just constantly jumping everywhere and doing it's AOE attack. I think I beat campaign Amygdala on my first try but defiled took over 2 hours because I'd reliably get her down to 1/3 health and then die immediately once she tears her arms off. I'm still confused why they made the chalice dungeons randomized. I guess maybe someone will want to play randomized dungeons forever, but I just don't see the point. After running through them all once I'm pretty sure I'd seen every room dozens of times. There isn't actually any reason to do the root chalices except for their own sake, and I personally feel complete without doing them. It's not like the game even tracks if you've done the additional rites or anything. Definitely the oddest part of the game, and something I didn't expect from Soulsborne. They were ok, though. I did enjoy the challenge, even if there were a bit too many dungeons.

Anyway, Bloodborne was pretty great. Honestly, I might even rank it above Dark Souls.
Next is Nier: Automata.
Nice, now keep The Old Hunters in mind because it’s all killer with very little filler.

As an aside, I think the chalice dungeons were randomized to mix up the looting process a bit. It was one point of contention Miyazaki had where he said he wished there was more time to flesh them out more. Also at one point everyone who played had their own personal dungeon that could be shared with other players online, which was cool. It was the last one I finished and was the toughest though.
 

Worgen

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Whatever, just wash your hands.
I grabbed ILLWILL. A really solid boomer type shooter. Some great visual design, enemies die satisfying, weapons are expected but weird in their own way and the music is fantastic. Something about boomer style shooters that makes them have great music, Supplice, Hedon, ILLWILL, Cultic, Dusk, Ultrakill, etc. All have fantastic music.
I do wish ILLWILL had more story, I really want more context for some of the weird enemies and levels.
 
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meiam

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I probably should get back to that at some point
Mehhhhh nier:automata is really nothing special, and they just release an anime so you can experience the story (ie the interesting part) without the... below average, to be generous, gameplay.
 
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XsjadoBlaydette

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Meet Your Maker.
One of the PSN monthly freebies. Is quite an interesting first impression, may also be one of the very few online games I could see myself getting into. First off, the setup and aesthetic is kinda Cronenberg cyberpunk apocalyptic post-human despair: an ambrosial cocktail of all thy darkest kinks.

Second off... secondly off? It don't force me to play with any other anxiety-inducing bag of needs, so far have been comfortably riding solo with acceptable success.

Thirdly, a main part of the game is building your own literal flaming death fortress of eternal corpses of which is added to the main circulation of levels that everyone can choose to play as part of their campaign progression. It directly feeds in to the other part of the game where you're playing through other ppls' creations to steal their special blood bank or whatever and escape, the resources you earn help you build more elaborate and stronger flaming death fortresses of eternal corpses' as well as upgrading yourself.

Fourthly...? It doesn't punish death, it kinda encourages it in fact. It tells you death is merely a learning process. Dying is a super quick reload to level entrance and you still keep your resources, so time doesn't feel wasted when you be having a fucko moment.

FITHLY! You are rewarded for other players dying in your fortress of black-blooded tears, and they drop these rewards where they die so you can jog over to each spot they died in the fortress creation mode and bask in your own genocidal ingenuity when there's a big pool of shiny resources from loadsa players at a vicious choke-point you designed. These build up when you not playing too, so logging in can be a tad of a masochistic delight.

Sixthly - what an awful word, I shouldn't have done that, sorry - when your boss is a sinister-voiced jar mutant baby demanding you feed them stolen mutant blood or whatever to make them grow...

ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-13.jpg

...it does somewhat tickle the intrigue areas of the curious mind.

And even tho it's very early days, perhaps first days, am still proud of me baby fortress of meat reclamation just casually harvesting my enemies for their valuable juices...

ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-14.jpg

Wait, one last bit of praise for not logging me out whenever I have the sheer gall to go toilet like every other online game, you are doing god's work here!
 
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Absent

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The boring one
...it does somewhat tickle the intrigue areas of the curious mind.
Yeah. I don't like online games for several reasons (they too often imply interaction with online players, and they too often depend on servers that can pull the plug at any time while I like buying games I can still play ten years later), but I've watched a bit of Meet Your Maker and it's the only time I found the concept actually quite appealing.

But also dangerously so, as it can be a tremendous time sink (for stuff that can vanish forever overnight) and can become a DLC trap pretty easily. Not to mention that izs creative aspect can be ruined by players exploiting the system or copy-pasting online recipes...

I've seldom been that close to buying a multiplayer-oriented game. It still isn't very close.