So Bloodborne

[Tohuvabohu]

Seeing that video reminds me how much I love that the game implemented an item whose soul sole purpose is to pull/activate enemies; the Pebble. No arrows or other valuable projectiles necessary, just chuck a pebble. =)

It also adds a dash of humor, at least to me. Something about throwing a pebble at a bloodthirsty werewolf to piss it the fuck off and come after me is funny.

There have been some moments of panic though where I'm dodging like crazy in the middle of a fight and end up mashing Square for some reason, only to stop dead in my tracks and toss a rock.

I think this happened in the middle of my Cleric Beast encounter... And I surprisingly did not die.

I ruined that moment for myself when I accidentally clicked the target button.. Then I jumped down and went to town with my whip!

I dunno why I didn't think to target. Honestly, I was kindof nervewracked by how creepy the whole thing was. It didn't get any better when I jumped down to fight them later. One of them somehow got behind me without realizing it, and hit me in the back out of nowhere. It actually startled the fuck out of me.

 

[Casual Shinji]

snip

Right on!

I mean, who the hell do these people think they are enjoying a game you don't like!?

 

[Ushiromiya Battler]

I dunno why I didn't think to target. Honestly, I was kindof nervewracked by how creepy the whole thing was. It didn't get any better when I jumped down to fight them later. One of them somehow got behind me without realizing it, and hit me in the back out of nowhere. It actually startled the fuck out of me.

Hah, yeah the atmosphere is pretty creepy. I got the shit scared out of me when I walked around inside a dark house and got attacked by woman in a wheelchair. Noped the fuck out and ran to the checkpoint thingy.

Now if only the game would finish downloading so I could get back to playing T__T

 

[Drops a Sweet Katana]

I would play it on my housemate's PS4, but I don't have the time with exams coming up in the next month. And once those are over, we all move out. And I'm not willing to drop significant dosh on a new console any time soon. I'm sure I'll crack and get one just to play Bloodborne, but not for a while.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

snip

Right on!

I mean, who the hell do these people think they are enjoying a game you don't like!?

It's not about enjoying a game but saying it has depth when it does not and acting like it's some accomplishment to beat it when it's easier than the standard mass marketed AAA game, even Kingdoms of Amalur is a harder game. Enjoy whatever you enjoy all you want but don't be labeling it something it's not.

 

[Villain Protagonist]

I'm loving this game. Aggravating load times aside, the game is excellent. I'm not even particularly skilled at the souls games, I tend to get by through sheer bullheaded stubborness and rage at failure. There is something about these games though, that no matter how frustrating they get, I can't stop playing for very long.

I got a recording of the strongest NOPE moment I encountered fairly early on in the game.


My eyes widened, my breathing stopped, then promptly NOPED the fuck out.

Yeah, I really love this game. Really really love it.

There's an even bigger nope moment a little further past there. I won't spoil it, but let's just say I did my best Will Smith "Aww hell naw!" impression when I saw it.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Right on!

I mean, who the hell do these people think they are enjoying a game you don't like!?

It's not about enjoying a game but saying it has depth when it does not and acting like it's some accomplishment to beat it when it's easier than the standard mass marketed AAA game, even Kingdoms of Amalur is a harder game. Enjoy whatever you enjoy all you want but don't be labeling it something it's not.

Good to know you're the authority on depth and difficulty then.

Hey, I could argue all I want about how the game is indeed hard and has depth, but something tells me that would be futile.

 

[Aerosteam]

Snip

Maybe you found it not difficult, but according to everyone who bought it on Steam, between only 5% to 8.4% of people completed it.

I know what you're going to say. "They obviously didn't complete it because they didn't like it". That might be true for some but I don't think that's the case for all of the 95% or so of the players.

 

[Bombiz]

snip

Right on!

I mean, who the hell do these people think they are enjoying a game you don't like!?

It's not about enjoying a game but saying it has depth when it does not and acting like it's some accomplishment to beat it when it's easier than the standard mass marketed AAA game, even Kingdoms of Amalur is a harder game. Enjoy whatever you enjoy all you want but don't be labeling it something it's not.

I had a harder time with Dark souls then Kingdoms of Amalur.

 

[hybridial]

Snip

Maybe you found it not difficult, but according to everyone who bought it on Steam, between only 5% to 8.4% of people completed it.

I know what you're going to say. "They obviously didn't complete it because they didn't like it". That might be true for some but I don't think that's the case for all of the 95% or so of the players.

I would just like to point out that that percentage is about that low for almost every game. A lot of people buy games on Steam and simply leave them unfinished (or untouched.)

I will say I found the game difficult at times but I recognise that it was due to my own inherent tendency to want to be aggressive and to not play the game the way it clearly demands to be played.

When I did, I found the game very manageable, very easy once I got into the second half (Tomb of Giants took me 15 minutes and I basically hacked Nito to death effortlessly) but it also just wasn't fun to me. But I felt like I had to beat it for people to take my opinion seriously. I acknowledge that's my own flaw. But I think the people who really find Dark Souls "fun" place way, way too much emphasis on repetition and forced caution.

but I also feel that the first Dark Souls in particular has a lot of things wrong with it, like the online code being garbage, a lot of levels feeling unfinished and horribly textured, and various issues with collision detection and bugs. 2 was much more polished and I appreciated that.

 

[FoolKiller]

Can someone tell me how it is different from DS? Because, it looks neat and all, but I spend 2-3 hours blundering through DS1 without any semblance of direction or motivation. That's not really something I would like to pay full price to repeat...

Forgive me if I'm just cynical and blind, but the setting is the only difference I see. (I think I even saw the same immersion-breaking rag-dolls...)

Umm... its Dark Souls-esque but no blocking and faster paced. It actually is a bit akin to Ninja Gaiden the way others are saying. Dodging is the one skill to master. Very hard but very rewarding.

 

[FoolKiller]

But I think the people who really find Dark Souls "fun" place way, way too much emphasis on repetition and forced caution.

Its not that I find fun. Its striving for perfection that I like. You do something wrong, you get smacked. You try something else and it works but then you try to spam it, you get smacked. I feel the same way from doing Souls games that I got from learning the patterns in Zelda, Mario or other such old school games.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

Good to know you're the authority on depth and difficulty then.

Hey, I could argue all I want about how the game is indeed hard and has depth, but something tells me that would be futile.

The Souls games have very little actual skill-based difficulty. I played Dark Souls and I completely understand why it would be futile to argue the game is hard and has depth too, circle strafing breaks the game. How about making through Sen's Fortress first run, no walkthrough, and not dying once or getting hit by a trap if you just fucking pay attention. Even Extra Credits says Dark Souls can be an easy game.

I had a harder time with Dark souls then Kingdoms of Amalur.

I'm saying Dark Souls has very little skill-based difficulty. I'm sure I died more in DS than KoS as well but the times I did die in KoS was just due to needing to execute better where as DS you die just cause you want to go faster than you should.

Snip

Maybe you found it not difficult, but according to everyone who bought it on Steam, between only 5% to 8.4% of people completed it.

I know what you're going to say. "They obviously didn't complete it because they didn't like it". That might be true for some but I don't think that's the case for all of the 95% or so of the players.

That statistic seems actually about average especially for a game as long as Dark Souls:
http://kotaku.com/5832450/nine-out-of-10-will-not-finish-the-game-they-are-playing

Completion percentage probably has more to do with length than anything. I'm sure like an 8-10 hour shooter has a higher completion percentage than a the very best 40 hour game regardless of difficulty.

 

[Iwata]

Especially since I've seen other Souls series done by a Youtuber known as SSoHPKC (Seamus), it seems I'm trying to pick up his good habits.

Seamus' playthroughs are fun, but personally I'm looking forward to Nova's ''Till I Rage' videos on it.

 

[StormShaun]

Seamus' playthroughs are fun, but personally I'm looking forward to Nova's ''Till I Rage' videos on it.

Fuckin' Ginger Powder.
He looks horrific as ever ... no wonder the town is on a hunt. XD
Yeah, I'm glad he's doing that. Hoping that we'll see something just like the Dark Souls 2 'mishap' with Aleks.

As with Seamus, I hope he does something, but it might still be a stream. Still, it is always good to learn from him.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

I played and finished Demons Souls and Dark Souls which felt pretty much the same game only I liked the environment more in Dark and the mystery behind the setting in Demons.

Huh, I think that matches my opinion on the two games almost exactly. I love all of the details in the Nexus, I haven't finished the game yet, but there's a number of things I'm very curious about, most significantly of which being the story behind the broken archstone.

I'm not sure what to think of Bloodborne yet. On one hand I really like the visual style, it seems like a step back in the right direction after the sort of cliched look of Dark Souls 2. On the other hand, the combat looks significantly different, which in of itself could be a good thing, but I'm not sure how I'll feel about the absence of shields (Shields are gone, right? I haven't seen them in any of the trailers). It's definitely something I'll be keeping an eye on though

 

[SeventhSigil]

Caved in and picked it up tonight. I was a bit concerned about whether I could 'git gud' enough without flinging my controller in frustration at the nearest wall, as I had never played a Souls game before, but I have to say, only two bosses in and this is rapidly turning into one of my favorite titles. The combat, I find, has this great mix of pre-battle strategy where you try as best you can to ascertain the situation- how many enemies, their types, best angle of approach and/or opportunities to draw some of them away- as well as 'Oh crap crap crap crap' quick dodging when, inevitable, some brilliant plan of yours fails and you find yourself trying quite vigorously not to die. The elation I feel for conquering opposition that I was CERTAIN was going to obliterate me is almost addicting. @_@ Interestingly, even though I am technically far more dangerous a fighter in Shadows of Mordor, as Talion is a wraithly demi-god of a warrior, playing my Hunter in Bloodborne makes me feel infinitely more badass, because it feels like I'm clawing my way past insurmountable odds.

Also little touches. Naturally, your clothes get soaked in crimson blood after a vigorous slaying, but not all of the enemies bleed red, and that will be reflected in the stains on your laundry. After cleaving my way through half of the Central region, then slaughtering my way through the sewers, then back up top to chop my way across the bridge towards the second boss, I was a veritable mess of red and green blood.

 

[Lufia Erim]

I love it. I don't really mind the whole "no shield" thing, I never played DS with a shield anyways. The environments seem to be very open and wonderful to explore, although enemies are more keen on ambushing now, so you really need your guard up at all times. The only super frustrating thing so far is this boss that poisons me, requiring me to farm antidotes just to survive the fight. I don't like having to farm for items just to win a fight.

I having so much trouble with that boss. I skipped the first boss, because he was scary and continued on to the old cathedral i think it is, beat the priest/gravedigger without too much trouble, but this boss i can get him down to 25% no problem, then he buffs himself with poison, insta poisons me in one hit, and i can't get away fast enough to heal and remove poison before dying. Any tips?
Also i get so many antodotes from enemy drops i'm surprised you ran out of the .

OT: i love the game so far. Getting used to not usin a shield and being agressive took some time , but the game is a lot of fun.

 

[Fappy]

I think I am nearly at the end. Level 75 and going back and making sure I complete optional content (that I can find) before I finish the story by accident. This game started off insanely hard, and while it is still difficult it has gotten a lot easier near the middle and end. I managed to one-shot a number of bosses

 

[Casual Shinji]

Good to know you're the authority on depth and difficulty then.

Hey, I could argue all I want about how the game is indeed hard and has depth, but something tells me that would be futile.

The Souls games have very little actual skill-based difficulty. I played Dark Souls and I completely understand why it would be futile to argue the game is hard and has depth too, circle strafing breaks the game. How about making through Sen's Fortress first run, no walkthrough, and not dying once or getting hit by a trap if you just fucking pay attention. Even Extra Credits says Dark Souls can be an easy game.

How does circle strafing break the game? Sure, if you're facing one or two mooks you can make short work of them with this tactic, but nearly any other scenario circle strafing will just get you within the attack range of another enemy or at the mercy of some environmental hazard. Just because you can strafe behind an enemy doesn't mean you're not still extremely vulnerable if you make the wrong move. Yes, the game is easy if you don't make the wrong move, but by that definition every game is easy.

Yes, you pay attention and be on your guard at all times, and Sen's Fortress isn't that hard... And you know why you have to pay attention and be on your guard constantly? Because otherwise you get killed. That's considered the direct opposite of easy.