What are you currently playing?

[happyninja42]

I started playing Octopath Traveler last night, as well as still playing through Days Gone with my wife. Which is actually a really damn good zombie game, mostly for the characters. Like I really enjoy the amount of drama and dimension they give the various supporting characters. One character in particular I really enjoyed, because they were playing him against type for a long time in the game, and I was happy for the potential subversion of the trope. Basically he's coded to be a complete douchebag when you first see him. From his clothing, to his nickname, to his manner and disposition to you from the moment you meet. But if you actually look at what he is doing, and why he is doing it, and what his feelings and motivations are about the current events, he's really not doing anything "bad" to make you distrust him. You just distrust him because he looks like a douchebag, and the game clearly means for you to get that impression. Sadly they end up going exactly where the trope suggests it will go with him, which depressed me a lot, but the fact that they made me actually like, and root for the character who is basically the Sniveling Shitbag Underling of the guy in charge, was a refreshing change to most stories...up until they undid all that work. But, hey at least it was ambiguous how he would play out for most of his content, so that's good.

Octopath Traveler. It's pretty fun so far. The combat is pretty repetitive though, as you dont really have a lot of options early on, and even when you do start getting more, the end result still boils down to "attack for the Break, then pile on damage" I'm enjoying the storytelling aspect of it, even if it's somewhat copy/paste for the 2 heroes I've got. The quest interface and journal could use some work, as it's hard to tell what I need to do next for some of the sidequests, even when talking to the person directly.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

I'm past the edit limit, but an update on my last post: I managed to defeat Nito, by luring him around the arena to separate him from his (actually limited) minions, defeated them all permanently with my Divine Longsword +8, then switched to Greatsword of Artorias to duel the big guy. Was worried I wouldn't have enough Blooming Moss, but I pulled through.

I can see the end of Dark Souls from here. I'll probably pick up Bloodborne or 3 next, since I don't have 2 but I've really enjoyed this and want to keep the ride going.

 

[Dalisclock]

I'm past the edit limit, but an update on my last post: I managed to defeat Nito, by luring him around the arena to separate him from his (actually limited) minions, defeated them all permanently with my Divine Longsword +8, then switched to Greatsword of Artorias to duel the big guy. Was worried I wouldn't have enough Blooming Moss, but I pulled through.

I can see the end of Dark Souls from here. I'll probably pick up Bloodborne or 3 next, since I don't have 2 but I've really enjoyed this and want to keep the ride going.

Do you have access to the Artorias DLC? If so, are you planning on going through it before you go to the finale? It's worth the extra time invested and endgame is the best time to tackle it, since the boss fights are challenging(though one is optional).

If you don't play 2, it's not the end of the world. Most people(myself included) consider it the weakest of the Souls games. It's not a terrible game(or even a terrible Souls game) and I appreciate the fact FROM tried to do something different. Unfortunately, it flubs a lot of the execution.

 

[meiam]

Octopath Traveler. It's pretty fun so far. The combat is pretty repetitive though, as you dont really have a lot of options early on, and even when you do start getting more, the end result still boils down to "attack for the Break, then pile on damage" I'm enjoying the storytelling aspect of it, even if it's somewhat copy/paste for the 2 heroes I've got. The quest interface and journal could use some work, as it's hard to tell what I need to do next for some of the sidequests, even when talking to the person directly.

The combat sadly never really evolve, the only new mechanic that you can obtain in game are attack that require all charge to be used, but they're not that big a deal. Eventually you'll be able to cause break with almost every character, so even the break mechanic fall apart a bit.

 

[happyninja42]

The combat sadly never really evolve, the only new mechanic that you can obtain in game are attack that require all charge to be used, but they're not that big a deal. Eventually you'll be able to cause break with almost every character, so even the break mechanic fall apart a bit.

Yeah, but honestly, given the games it's emulating I can't really criticize it too much. The old Final Fantasy games, and similar style games, did not have a robust combat system either. There was attack/spell/defend/special, and that was really it. You might have some combo system depending on the game, but other than that, it's a pretty standard system. Which...honestly just makes me realize how basic the combat was in those old games, that I just never really noticed too much.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

I'm past the edit limit, but an update on my last post: I managed to defeat Nito, by luring him around the arena to separate him from his (actually limited) minions, defeated them all permanently with my Divine Longsword +8, then switched to Greatsword of Artorias to duel the big guy. Was worried I wouldn't have enough Blooming Moss, but I pulled through.

I can see the end of Dark Souls from here. I'll probably pick up Bloodborne or 3 next, since I don't have 2 but I've really enjoyed this and want to keep the ride going.

Awesome. It’s also worth checking out the Gravelord Sword if you’ve found it. I used that for most of the game, loved it.

I didn’t see but are you playing the Remastered version with DLC? Because that extra content is well worth it too. Has some of the best boss fights and lore additions if you’re into it.

As for what to play next, it depends on how much you want to shake things up. Bloodborne is a bigger departure and might make DS3 feel easier afterwards, but it’s also a complete shift in themes and everything else. If I could do it over again I might’ve saved it for last as it’s technically the most “recent” game in terms of the setting, but at the same time it’s arguably FROM’s best game and even the director himself stated it’s closest to his heart (so far).

Either way DS3 is by far the best iteration of the Souls gameplay formula with outstanding bosses, and Bloodborne is that plus being more focused on aggressive offense, so you can’t go wrong.

 

[Dalisclock]

The combat sadly never really evolve, the only new mechanic that you can obtain in game are attack that require all charge to be used, but they're not that big a deal. Eventually you'll be able to cause break with almost every character, so even the break mechanic fall apart a bit.

OT uses a system similar to FFT, FF5 and a couple other games where you can essentially learn a bunch of abilities from various classes and use them while in other classes, essentially allowing you to hybrid class. Which can be awesome but it takes a while to really get it to full potential.

 

[happyninja42]

OT uses a system similar to FFT, FF5 and a couple other games where you can essentially learn a bunch of abilities from various classes and use them while in other classes, essentially allowing you to hybrid class. Which can be awesome but it takes a while to really get it to full potential.

Really? You think it's like FFT? Interesting, because I played a ton of FFT back in the day and it's not making me think of that at all. Granted I'm only like 3 hours in, and only just finished the Act 1 introduction stuff for my primary hero and my 1st ally. But aside from the art style, the combat doesn't make me think of FFT at all.

 

[Samtemdo8]

Wario Ware Smooth Moves, I bought it on the Wii U Eshop.

This game should have been the game bundled in the Nintendo Wii's launch instead of Wii Sports.

 

[meiam]

OT uses a system similar to FFT, FF5 and a couple other games where you can essentially learn a bunch of abilities from various classes and use them while in other classes, essentially allowing you to hybrid class. Which can be awesome but it takes a while to really get it to full potential.

Sorta but I found the ability a lot less interesting than the FFT system. For most of the game there's not that many interesting abilities and then later on you have a bunch of quasi mandatory one, at the end everyone had more or less the same ability. You also don't actually have to use the class to learn their ability or unlock new classes so I very rarely changed class. And the various classes aren't that distinct for the most part (at least the basic one), the only equipment that changes is just the weapon and those don't really matter since it's just question of using the one the enemy is weak to, similar for magic.

I think the system could have been great, but needed some much needed alteration to give it more depth.

 

[Dalisclock]

A bunch of Indie Demos dropped on Steam and I took a crack at a couple I found interesting.

Garden Story. This is a zelda-like action-adventure game that's super cute and seems to be about clearing the world of rot and helping towns rebuild one at a time. Nothing here is super groundbreaking and it's not particularly smooth controlling but it's cute and charming and it evokes a lot of classic old school zelda-like games from the SNES era. And maybe it's like animal crossing?(I'm not sure what else to compare it to). Which I'm down with.

Metamorphosis. It's basically a love letter to Kafka, notably the titular story about a man who wakes up one day as a bug. The demo doesn't reveal too much, but the trailer and the demo show it's kind of a first person adventure platformer(I think) introducing the main character waking up, walking through a series of rooms and hallways that get increasingly weird(An reference to Silent Hills, probably) and end with the main character becoming a bug(though it's first person, so mostly it's bug arms and a distorted voice, but the world does seem appropriately massive), showing off the wall walk mechanic and apparently at some point, will go to a tower of some sort where he will find out why this is happening. There'll probably be references to The Castle and The Trial as well in the full game.

Unto the End. So it feels like an homage to games like INSIDE but also oldies like Another World/Flashback but with a well developed combat mechanic as well. It's quite unforgiving, where it's very, very easy to die right off the bat. The game does force you into a practice combat session to teach you the combat system and it's the only mercy you get(well, there's an autosave but it's unclear how often it triggers), because one or two hits will kill you. It feels like....wait for it.....Dark Souls due to how easy it is to get owned by the first enemies you meet and not knowing the combat system or being patient enough to use it are sure tickets to the last checkpoint. In fact, I still haven't finished it because the first gauntlet of enemies was too much for me and I wanted to try some of the other demos. I'm not sure what it's about but presumably it's about more than getting murdered a lot.

Inmost. So this one is probably the weirdest of the bunch. It looks like a game that was made during the 1990's, with something akin to SNES graphics but a gameboy-ish muted color palette(a predominantly greenish tint). It plays like a puzzle platformer but the theme is more like a ghost story with some storybook elements. It also switches between 4 different characters with no real explanation what links them. It is intriguing though and I hope the full product ends up living up to the potential here.

Okay, apparently this is an Apple Arcade game that is just now coming to PC. I still only know what I see in the demo and the trailer.

 

[Dalisclock]

Really? You think it's like FFT? Interesting, because I played a ton of FFT back in the day and it's not making me think of that at all. Granted I'm only like 3 hours in, and only just finished the Act 1 introduction stuff for my primary hero and my 1st ally. But aside from the art style, the combat doesn't make me think of FFT at all.

I meant more of the class/skill/Job system. It's probably closer to FF5 in that regard but FFT kinda did something similar. I was tempted to say FF3 but FF5 was a better evolution of the FF3 Job system.

Some of this is really me pulling examples off the top of my head, so if the examples don't work very well, that's why. Also, it's been like 20 years since I played 3/5/Tactics.

 

[happyninja42]

I meant more of the class/skill/Job system. It's probably closer to FF5 in that regard but FFT kinda did something similar. I was tempted to say FF3 but FF5 was a better evolution of the FF3 Job system.

Some of this is really me pulling examples off the top of my head, so if the examples don't work very well, that's why. Also, it's been over 20 years since I played 3/5/Tactics.

Ah well I just haven't seen any indication of being able to switch jobs yet in OT, which is why I was confused. I assumed everyone was just in their own lane of Apothecary/Cleric/Fighter/Dancer, etc. Granted I'm only a few hours in.

I'm totally cool if they do allow some cross-classing, that would be great.

 

[Dalisclock]

Ah well I just haven't seen any indication of being able to switch jobs yet in OT, which is why I was confused. I assumed everyone was just in their own lane of Apothecary/Cleric/Fighter/Dancer, etc. Granted I'm only a few hours in.

I'm totally cool if they do allow some cross-classing, that would be great.

There are job shrines scattered around the map that allow you to change jobs. I don't think you really start discovering them until around chapter 2 but it's been a year since I played.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

I’m not sure I’ll have the patience for Grounded mode in TLoU Remastered. Rephrased: I would have enough patience if I didn’t have anything else I wanted to play, but considering I already played through the original twice and then some it’s a tough sell.

I’m in the Boston Capitol building where they’re hunting you down after leaving Tess, and most of the normal checkpoints are MIA making this a huge trial and error thing where one mistake has you back at the beginning of the encounter. I like the intensity of it but realize there’s still a good 10-12 hours (multiplied by a large amount of retries most likely) ahead of probably even tougher encounters; although I remember this section being in my top three toughest on Survivor originally as far as retries needed.

Some of the infected behavior isn’t very reliable for stealth either. Like sometimes I’ll be completely still and a random clicker will freak out and make a dash for me. But then I’ll be bumbling around in a room on the other side of a wall knocking everything but the supplies I’m searching for over, and they ignore it. Go figure. Other than the unforgiving lack of checkpoints I’d be more inclined to continue if I knew that I could get by on bombs and Molotovs for most of the forced combat sections, because aiming is too wonky to rely on here with such scarce ammo.

I’m also on the fence about finishing Infamous: Second Son. It was a *freebie* on PSN so I wouldn’t feel too bad about uninstalling. It’s just so tedious and for some reason Delsin controls like a near weightless Gumby. The first two games had some of the best feeling third person controls, where Cole felt like he was physically connected and sure-footed within the environment. Now it feels like I’m traipsing about like a rubber twig bouncing off of buildings trying to clamber up them, unsure of what the game will let me grab onto. And the general combat is just plain boring so far. I have some bombs and whatnot but the melee is weak, even next to the previous games which weren’t exactly strong in that regard either.

It also just feels rather aimless so far, like I’m just chasing/clearing random map icons and whittling down the % of each district until *something* happens. If it sounds like I’m getting tired of this kind of game design it’s because...I am. I wouldn’t mind as much if the general traversal felt fun but they even flubbed that up this time. To compliment Delsin’s wonky footing and movement, the map just feels cluttered and with too many awkward obstacles for the sake of what, density? Idk. Plus it has this weird UV filter where it seems like the day is stuck on glaring sunset (or sunrise?), but the contrast is also bad meaning other parts are way too dark to see what you’re doing. I know it’s an early PS4 game but it seems to have some of the worst image quality, aside from some nice looking building textures, artificial light sources and road surfaces.

Maybe I’ll check out the MK11 Aftermath expansion tonight. I also saw the demo for Desperados 3 on Steam so tried a bit of that out. Seems interesting so far and might be an RTS I could actually get into, but not sure I’d want to drop $ for another new game. We’ll see how the entire demo grabs me.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

Do you have access to the Artorias DLC? If so, are you planning on going through it before you go to the finale? It's worth the extra time invested and endgame is the best time to tackle it, since the boss fights are challenging(though one is optional).

I didn’t see but are you playing the Remastered version with DLC? Because that extra content is well worth it too. Has some of the best boss fights and lore additions if you’re into it.

I'm playing Prepare to Die Edition, which I think has the DLC, but I haven't even got a clue of where to start it. I was planning on just finishing this run and saving it and most of the other sidequests/optional bosses for a second run in the future.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

I'm playing Prepare to Die Edition, which I think has the DLC, but I haven't even got a clue of where to start it. I was planning on just finishing this run and saving it and most of the other sidequests/optional bosses for a second run in the future.

Before you head to the final boss (or even if you get there and die), make a USB backup save because then you can reload it to get a different ending. The DLC also is pretty late game, so waiting til NG+ might not be in your best interest, especially with the difficulty jump.

Accessing the DLC is a pretty obtuse process; so much so you’d likely miss it short of having an epiphany, a lot of dumb luck, or a lot of scouring every area of the game. If you want to remain spoiler free, the only hint I could say is to
kill all the big crystalline things, wait until you have a key inventory item that might need fixing, then look for the longest ladder at a lake for a rough starting point, and loop around to investigate a dark disturbance of sorts.

Only use that advice when you’re about to give up on ever finding it though.

 

[Dreiko]

Day 2 of p5R, almost 22 hours in. I can see how I beat the first game in 3 weeks with 150 hours of playtime haha. Game is so good and always gives you something new, I can never get tired of it. Even the grind is fun with trying to fuse everything possible while making money and conserving SP.

Those new exploding enemies and velvet room challenges are fun. Also I started meeting more royal-specific content like that weird little Mementos kid and the councilor confidant. So far so good on both of em. About to get to the part where Anne has to pose naked now. Fun times.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

Before you head to the final boss (or even if you get there and die), make a USB backup save because then you can reload it to get a different ending. The DLC also is pretty late game, so waiting til NG+ might not be in your best interest, especially with the difficulty jump.

I didn't mean NG+, I meant NG with a new character and a different build philosophy. I'm probably going to do NG+ at some point as well, but I've heard it's difficult enough that even beating the game once doesn't mean I'm ready for it.

I did get a hint somewhere else for where to go to start, but I'm still considering whether to go for it. Supposedly a lot of it is geared around the hack-and-slash playstyle I'm already using, so it might be worth it...

 

[meiam]

I didn't mean NG+, I meant NG with a new character and a different build philosophy. I'm probably going to do NG+ at some point as well, but I've heard it's difficult enough that even beating the game once doesn't mean I'm ready for it.

I did get a hint somewhere else for where to go to start, but I'm still considering whether to go for it. Supposedly a lot of it is geared around the hack-and-slash playstyle I'm already using, so it might be worth it...

NG+ isn't really that much harder, the harder part start with NG++ and up, because at that point you're getting serious diminishing return from level up while the enemy are getting stronger linearly.

Avoidance start to become really important, you can't just tank/shield stuff anymore since you're defence doesn't really increase anymore while enemy damage keeps increasing, but so long as you're good at avoiding it doesn't matter, since the enemy can't do damage no matter how hard they hit if you don't take any damage, fight can start to drag tough.