What are you currently playing?
- Thread starter Nick Calandra
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Finished up Half-Life 2 Episode 1.
Brisker pacing, and Alyx being a constant companion, results in a much-improved experience over the base game.
So far, this is the first Half-Life game that I am actually somewhat positive about.
Brisker pacing, and Alyx being a constant companion, results in a much-improved experience over the base game.
So far, this is the first Half-Life game that I am actually somewhat positive about.
Do you mean story or gameplay? Because I just got past all the initial stuff I think and I'm about to venture into the open world proper. Story is butt- typical video game bullshit. But that's fine, it's what I expected and was in the mood for. The video game equivalent of my recent watching of the Reach TV show.
Started thr Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. Literally about 5 minutes so far, but after playing Elden Ring nigh exclusively for over a year and a half, it just feels good to have something new in it.
Both.
Story just become complete non sense and the main character just gets worse and worse. The open world aspect become even more empty, I think they ran out of time or something cause there's massive portion of the map that are just floor texture and nothing.
I've been playing Shadow of the Erdtree, and good golly the first real boss sucks. It's like a greatest hits of shitty Fromsoft boss design: interminable combos where you get maybe one attack opportunity for every 5 the boss does, jerky movement that spazzes the camera out, the boss design is an incomprehensible mess of flailing parts making it basically impossible to read if you get close, and it's only made worse by the cornucopia of flashy effects in the second half, blinding the player almost completely. There's the trademark heat seeking missile tracking where the boss rotates on a turnstile, the boss having a host of gap closer moves, meaning you spend a lot of the fight just chasing the damn thing down... it honestly blows. At least it has the decency of not having a "fuck you, I win" super-move like Malenia. But it's basically a more frustrating version of Maliketh, which is just really really bad. I have a feeling this boss is gonna get patched some, because fighting it just hasn't been fun. Playing it has made me miss Sekiro and Lies of P, because compared to them, Elden Ring's boss fights feel really passive: it's basically a turn based game except in real time. In Sekiro and LoP you always have the option to parry, giving the player more agency.
More Elden Sherdtree. Covered most ground of the main level of the first map. The backhand blades have a sweet moveset. Really feels like a more mobil, useful upgrade to the quickstep skill with a jutting attack on enemy’s flank. Also the Blackgaol knight dropped what will be my next load out for a STR build.
I’m pretty convinced they designed some of these main bosses to be more spectacle than anything else. I mean, I beat the dancing lion thing on my second attempt last night but can see someone under leveled struggling for sure. There was probably some luck involved since I clearly didn’t learn its moveset, but I also have 60 vigor and used the NPC summon, plus a level 10 Oleg spirit ash during his second phase. It does have an opening after all the jumping and whatnot. Managed to posture break it three times. One of those fights where lock-on is probably better off since it’s big enough to melee without. Casters might need to toggle it often, idk.
To contrast, the more normal duel style Blackgaol knight fight was on point, but ironically took me at least a dozen tries. He hits harder than the lion more often than not, but the fight certainly felt fair after learning his attacks. It was fun since my heavy attacks with the backhand blades have good reach that could reliably interrupt him, and stuff like his crossbow flurry is easily avoidable just by running.
I’m pretty convinced they designed some of these main bosses to be more spectacle than anything else. I mean, I beat the dancing lion thing on my second attempt last night but can see someone under leveled struggling for sure. There was probably some luck involved since I clearly didn’t learn its moveset, but I also have 60 vigor and used the NPC summon, plus a level 10 Oleg spirit ash during his second phase. It does have an opening after all the jumping and whatnot. Managed to posture break it three times. One of those fights where lock-on is probably better off since it’s big enough to melee without. Casters might need to toggle it often, idk.
To contrast, the more normal duel style Blackgaol knight fight was on point, but ironically took me at least a dozen tries. He hits harder than the lion more often than not, but the fight certainly felt fair after learning his attacks. It was fun since my heavy attacks with the backhand blades have good reach that could reliably interrupt him, and stuff like his crossbow flurry is easily avoidable just by running.
#Blud
Pleasantly animated brawler-crawler (the internet says it a dungeon crawler but it more like small-town narrative brawler to me) take on Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a sort of Dexter's Lab/Powerpuff Girls art style. Some awkwardness in movement going through doors at points, but otherwise a surprise gd game. A few of the enemies and bosses especially have that quivering wobbly quality of Cuphead to their movement animations too. Loved the early-ish lovecraftian goat boss as tricksy as it was! Is best to see in motion instead of screenshot though. The protag's dodge roll is nice n nifty...a nifty dodge roll can carry games through even average tiresome combat systems. It carried my grandad through world war trenches too I tells ya! Don't ask which war.
Pleasantly animated brawler-crawler (the internet says it a dungeon crawler but it more like small-town narrative brawler to me) take on Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a sort of Dexter's Lab/Powerpuff Girls art style. Some awkwardness in movement going through doors at points, but otherwise a surprise gd game. A few of the enemies and bosses especially have that quivering wobbly quality of Cuphead to their movement animations too. Loved the early-ish lovecraftian goat boss as tricksy as it was! Is best to see in motion instead of screenshot though. The protag's dodge roll is nice n nifty...a nifty dodge roll can carry games through even average tiresome combat systems. It carried my grandad through world war trenches too I tells ya! Don't ask which war.
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I was curious, but now you have my
Hi Fi Rush isn't very good.
Sighed and kind of thew my hands when I got to the upgrade screen. All the same, always the same. Poured all currency into life gauge, because couldn't be bothered to read descriptions of unlocks again. Practically every game. Would say health upgrades should just be in the world, but I wouldn't upgrade the player's health at all and give them all abilities from the start (or only give abilities through story progression, not currency and tedious screens) if I made a game.
Music is not good enough. No one would snap their finger and walk in such a swagger to these lame beats.
Think I'm gonna quit now that parry plays a role. Really annoying tutorials, by the way. Fail the tutorial and you have to start the area over again and tap/wait through all the messages again.
Sighed and kind of thew my hands when I got to the upgrade screen. All the same, always the same. Poured all currency into life gauge, because couldn't be bothered to read descriptions of unlocks again. Practically every game. Would say health upgrades should just be in the world, but I wouldn't upgrade the player's health at all and give them all abilities from the start (or only give abilities through story progression, not currency and tedious screens) if I made a game.
Music is not good enough. No one would snap their finger and walk in such a swagger to these lame beats.
Think I'm gonna quit now that parry plays a role. Really annoying tutorials, by the way. Fail the tutorial and you have to start the area over again and tap/wait through all the messages again.
Almost passed on it while browsing cause there's a lot of phone/low-key-scam-type games with similar-at-a-glance aesthetics in store screenshots being added weekly or daily even, but before doubt fully took the wheel, noticed unread phone messages had "pat stares at #blud" from some ongoing livestream within them, so basically just got real-time won over watching a hugely coincidencally-timed stream right there and then with the store page still open and teetering on edge of dismissal lol
- Apr 1, 2009
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I'm quite liking the back hand blades also. Along with Milady and the perfume bottles. I feel like the perfume bottles will get nerfed since their run heavy attack easily does 2k+ damage to larger enemies/bosses.
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It took me a bit to beat the lion, but I also don't use summons or ashes. Perfume bottle did great against it.
Nope.
The upgrade system is fine, practical, and works. You can even get refunds if you don't like move or want to grab it later. I'll take a standard upgrade screen/system over lame "skill trees" any day of the week.
They are in the world. Collect 4 pieces each to extend Chai's life bar. Not all of his health upgrades can't be bought. Same thing for the Reverb Gauge. You need collect 3 in whatever levels to extend it.
Music great. You're literally at the beginning still.
Then you don't know people much and I question your tastes in music, if these beats are "lame". I know musical tastes are always YMMV and that jazz, but yeah, no. You're wrong that one. The dynamic helps carries HF and a big part of its identity. No different from Metal Gear Rising, Streets of Rage 4, Devil May Cry 5, and even DmC.
That one you do have a point though. The parry introduction could've been done so much better and not be a forced tutorial. Honestly, parry should've been introduced before facing Rekka, or at the very least given after the first two combat introductions.
I played BPM EX Mode in HF Rush, and it is much more difficult than BPM on Normal. Me playing this in a tired/heat exhausted state didn't help much, but I will give it another shot later today. I am much more energized. Right now I am playing Wild Guns.
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Great job Pat, and thank you @XsjadoBlayde!
I tried the Night Slashers Remake Demo. I like the how they improved the combat, moves have directional inputs, and the animations that have for this remake are great, but can't top the original. My only problems are that dashing doesn't always consistently work (which I am sure they will fix), and the default controls suck. I am glad I looked and changed them before starting the game. The game definitely has a fairer difficulty balance than the arcade, but that is expected. I just wish the original was never removed from the eShop. I still have my digital download on Switch, and I have the rom on MAME, but that versions should have never been removed.
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Some more Shadow of the Erdtree, and I have a feeling this is where the limits of Fromsoft's combat design have reached their limits. So far I've beaten the Dancing Lion, and reached Rellana the Twin Moon Knight and Bayle the Dread I'm beginning to see a worrying pattern emerging: the only way Fromsoft can seemingly up the difficulty anymore is
On a sidenote, Fromsoft have possibly created the single best boss design of their entire catalogue with Bayle the Dread. My god, what a design. I'd never imagined a chunky dragon with ram horns could create such an instantly striking visual, but here we are. Even getting to him in the first place takes like 10 minutes of pure traversal, so it's genuinely amazing that they managed to create a boss fight that matches that amount of buildup.
- Giving every major boss a metric fuckton of health
- Giving every phase 2 its completely own moveset, forcing you to learn how to fight basically two bosses back to back.
- Making every boss a Manus or a Gwyn. Ie. bosses have endlessly long attack chains with no window for attack, and the damage is turned so high that trading damage or blocking isn't really viable either. Which, like I mentioned previously, makes most of the fights completely reactive for the majority of their duration as you dodge, dodge, dodge, dodge, dodge and only then get to attack safely.
On a sidenote, Fromsoft have possibly created the single best boss design of their entire catalogue with Bayle the Dread. My god, what a design. I'd never imagined a chunky dragon with ram horns could create such an instantly striking visual, but here we are. Even getting to him in the first place takes like 10 minutes of pure traversal, so it's genuinely amazing that they managed to create a boss fight that matches that amount of buildup.
Anyone tried Gal Guardians Demon Purge? I hear it's a great Castlevania style game with more emphasis on Classicvania than Metroidvania. You can still go back to previous levels as you wish though. There's a sale on Steam, but I am thinking of get a physical version on consoles if I like it enough. The only complaints I've heard is that the game is too easy for a Castlevania title, but that's a non-issue for me. Especially when you can unlock harder modes.
EDIT: Looking more into the game, it's basically an easier and more streamlined version of Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2. I can live with that. Much less frustrating and is GGDP is basically Curse of the Moon 3.
EDIT: Looking more into the game, it's basically an easier and more streamlined version of Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2. I can live with that. Much less frustrating and is GGDP is basically Curse of the Moon 3.
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It’s what happens when it’s like the 6th or 7th game in a string of them. More stuff, bigger levels, harder bosses, etc. To scale back or change the formula, it’d need to be significantly different game type without people complaining about getting less by way of content or challenge. Sekiro was somewhat of a departure, but not enough to change the general trend of things.
That said, I’ve heard a lot of people generally say Elden Ring can be the easiest or hardest game FROM’s made. Agreed if played like the old Souls games, but using all the new stuff makes it much easier to deal with. It’s why they had to change the difficulty system for the DLC so NG+ high leveled players wouldn’t just steamroll it.
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Yeah, they have fire, lightning and poison (might be others I just haven't found yet) and you use them just like normal weapons, they don't even use FP and they feel really strong.
Poisoned the well with repetition, upgrades always suspect now. Never can tell if added because they thought it would enhance the game or because it's expected. Can't help but think of my learning the upward and downward attacks in Streets of Rage years after I started playing. Satisfaction in finding them by accident. But if made now, would have to probably unlock with tedious menus full of stats and written descriptions.
I think I wouldn't even put health upgrades in the world of my action game. Because if the player doesn't find them, the game can become almost unplayable or too easy later.
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