Eh, I've never had a problem with other games copying the mechanics of popular games. It just seems like the natural progression, if a system is good, it will be copied. It's why we have industry standard things like "right joystick controls camera" or "spacebar is jump" etc. They're just effective designs to translate gamer input to game action. My issue with the clones, is if they don't really do anything enjoyable with the mechanics.
What are you currently playing?
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I’d say you’re missing out, but sure you’ve heard it many times before, and surely have your own reasons for not having seen it.
I usually don't mind clones, but your reasons is why I have the unenthusiastic questionable "yay!". The clones we've seen so far: Godfall, Avengers, and the upcoming DnD: Dark Alliance look and play lackluster. And as much as I like GoW 4, it has it's own issues. Yet everyone of these games do things worse than the trendsetter. Ironic, because God of War was a Devil May Cry clone, and the 4th game was copying Dark Souls (The cycle just feeds into itself!). Now granted, when DMC1 came out, there were plenty of lackluster clones. Even Capcom screwed up in this department with DMC2. Though back then, DMC clones became Stylish Action games/clones (around the time Shinobi PS2, Viewtiful Joe, Gungrave, and Ninja Gaiden XBOX came out), and when God of War 1 came out, the genre became GoW clones, because most studios (mainly Western devs and publishers) took the design template of that. Meaning, it's going to be a good while before we get some good GoW4 clones.
Due to all the hype, I just was not interested. With all of it dying down, I've now seen people say it's not as good as they thought it was or some shit like that. Which makes me question, why were y'all so hyped in the first place? Another show about a drug dealing asshole. Never seen one of those before. I still have no interests; especially now with me more interested in other shows.
It's really good. (So is The Wire, which I didnt watch until it had been out for a decade)
Also, you have to spend a couple of minutes watching a family eat cereal. Because that's entertaining.
What can I say, you made your decision. Nothing will make you change your mind. You not watching hurts neither me or you. Good luck with your shows
Still cracking away at the Mass Effect 1 remaster.
My more in-depth thoughts are in the dedicated ME Remaster thread, but i'd just like to chime in here, and say its a good time.
I wish they went further with some of the gameplay tweaks, but I have to remember that a lot of people liked ME1 just the way it is, so I completely understand why they only went so far.
But, at the end of the day, im having a great time revisiting this game, and the tweaks that they have made, have turned the game from one that I could not stand to replay, to one where Im actually enjoying myself.
My more in-depth thoughts are in the dedicated ME Remaster thread, but i'd just like to chime in here, and say its a good time.
I wish they went further with some of the gameplay tweaks, but I have to remember that a lot of people liked ME1 just the way it is, so I completely understand why they only went so far.
But, at the end of the day, im having a great time revisiting this game, and the tweaks that they have made, have turned the game from one that I could not stand to replay, to one where Im actually enjoying myself.
I’ve watched it about three times now (original airing, then on demand and marathons for repeat viewings) and would still say it’s a rare show that’s almost always firing on all cylinders (acting, directing, characterization, plot progression, etc.). I will say it took a few episodes to get into initially though, as it just seemed low budget and kinda sleazy. But the other elements were good enough to win me over, which also rarely happens because they usually aren’t with shows that don’t make a good first impression.
It also makes one of the best cases for how being involved with an illegal drug operation, and the abuse, lies, deception, etc. that comes with it can destroy a family. Not many shows carry the weight of their drama as effectively or consistently, from pilot to finale.
I finished Resident Evil 8. Holy shit. That was awesome. Great game from start to finish, definitely highly recommend. I don't want to say too much, because a lot of it is best enjoyed knowing as little as possible. But definitely play it if you get a chance. Not sure if it can take over from RE:2 as my favorite of the series, but it's up there.
I started a couple of other games a while back that I dropped to play RE8, so I'll probably pick those back up now. On my mind are Earthbound and Zelda: A Link to the Past.
I started a couple of other games a while back that I dropped to play RE8, so I'll probably pick those back up now. On my mind are Earthbound and Zelda: A Link to the Past.
After seeing that Sheltered 2 is in development, I noticed the other games by that same dev team, and saw Narita Boy was one of them. So I decided to try out the demo of it.
It's definitely a retro love letter to the 80s era of video games, and TRON in particular. It brings in a lot more depth to the story, and makes it feel a lot more like Ready Player One, in so far as The Creator of the digital world you are sucked into. That it seems to be heavily implying that a lot of the components of the digital world, are shaped, and reflections of key points in his life. It's pretty neat so far, though I did run into a hiccup with the demo. Not sure if I just got turned around, or if it what, but it gave me an item and said "go use this in the garden!" and I'll be damned if I could find a way to any garden. Navigation isn't great, as there is no map, at least not in the demo. But it's fun, as someone who grew up in the 80s, seeing the cheesy, yet heartfelt tone of the scifi elements is endearing, and made me smile. I can see the direction they seem to be going with it, and I'm down for it. I'll likely pick up the full game while it's on sale.
It's definitely a retro love letter to the 80s era of video games, and TRON in particular. It brings in a lot more depth to the story, and makes it feel a lot more like Ready Player One, in so far as The Creator of the digital world you are sucked into. That it seems to be heavily implying that a lot of the components of the digital world, are shaped, and reflections of key points in his life. It's pretty neat so far, though I did run into a hiccup with the demo. Not sure if I just got turned around, or if it what, but it gave me an item and said "go use this in the garden!" and I'll be damned if I could find a way to any garden. Navigation isn't great, as there is no map, at least not in the demo. But it's fun, as someone who grew up in the 80s, seeing the cheesy, yet heartfelt tone of the scifi elements is endearing, and made me smile. I can see the direction they seem to be going with it, and I'm down for it. I'll likely pick up the full game while it's on sale.
That's nice and all, but once is more than enough for me. I can't imagine myself doing repeat viewings of that show. More power to you though.
Contra Legacy.I replayed Contra Famicom, Contra Arcade, Super C, and Super Contra. The NES/Famicom counterparts are better than arcade counterparts in terms of length and replay value. I do favor Super C over the original Contra, because of better level design and a better Flame weapon that has a charge attack when holding the fire button down. Contra Arcade can beaten in 20-25 minutes, and Super Contra is absurdly hard. I'll probably play the Japanese versions of III and Hard Corps later.
Castlevania Bloodline/Vampire Killer (JP) - I still say this is the best of the 2D Classicvania games. You get two playable characters that are totally different from each other. You can upgrade your weapon and sub-weapons (provided you don't get hit after receiving them), and the graphical effects done on the Genesis makes Super Castlevania IV look like shit. My only complaint with this game is that it can go a bit overboard on the difficulty. If you're playing the Japanese version, then it's a bit easier, yet still challenging.
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I really like how they made God of War play more like Dark Souls to make it good.
I honestly don't see any similarities between GoW and dark souls. The older GoW games were a bit like DMC but dumbed down so I felt 4 was just trying to find its own identity. I did genuinely like it way more than I expected to going in and I saw what they were trying to achieve, I guess from a few short clips and images the combat looks a lot more grounded and basic. Also I played it on hard from the beginning which may have affected how it played for me since on hard things don't stagger as easily so it dissuades button mashing.
If GoW4 reminded me of any other game's combat it'd have to be something like the mellee in the last of us or something, that's the vibe I got from it initially, but no it has way more moves and systems and mechanics going for it, so that too is just a skin-deep similarity.
If GoW4 reminded me of any other game's combat it'd have to be something like the mellee in the last of us or something, that's the vibe I got from it initially, but no it has way more moves and systems and mechanics going for it, so that too is just a skin-deep similarity.
The spitshine makes ME1 heaps more fun to play, eventhough it's essentially the same game with the same mechanics. They've managed to unjank-a-fy the game despite its age still showing.
The RPG mechanics (which are flawed), the light and heavy attack button being on R1 and R2 respectively, and the fact that everytime you enter a new area, it does the Dark Souls thing where the location name appears in the middle of the screen. GoW4 is good game, don't get me wrong, but the moment I found out you could switch to the classic Square and Triangle (2 hours in to the game), I immediately went for that and tons of more fun. While the game does take influence from TLOUS in being a little more focused and "grounded", I find it better than TLOUS and I find Atreus way more interesting than Ellie.
Hopefully, they'll add a jump button next game.
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Atreus was great in that game. I loved his addition, as far as game mechanics and narratively. I had a lot of times, just due to the random AI controlling him, where he would be a Big Damn Hero, and leap up and start shanking some creature that was grappling me, and pull it off. And it was just so fun to see him leap up like a little tazmanian devil, screaming "Get off him!" *stab in throat, giant beasty screams in pain, I get released and whoop it's ass* I also enjoyed how invested I got when something was attacking him. I found it funny that I had reacted before the game even prompted me the first time with "Your son needs your help!" and I was already sprinting over there to shield smash whatever was messing with him.
Plus he became a powerful resource when he got his various mystical attacks, and could wreak some serious havoc on the battlefield.
Loved him so much. I'd be totally down for the franchise following him from this point forward. I don't even care "but he's not the god of war" argument I'm sure some people would bring up. He's fun, he's an enjoyable character, I like the potential difference in play style based on his power sets. I'm down for it.
Huh, had no idea there was a word for this particularly annoying social media zeitgeist. Thank you; I'm off to call some people out...
I really like how they made God of War play more like Dark Souls to make it good.
They also did a really good job making the melee (especially the ax) feel more tactile. My biggest concern for the sequel will be that, since the latest game is very skill/gear heavy, that they don’t do the old *YOINK* and make you start from zero again just because sequel. That shit needs to die off and right quick.
The Souls games had an excuse because it was a new chosen undead/setting/era/etc. and your character was always from scratch. If we’re playing Ragnarok as Kratos at all, those customizable non story-centric skills and gear need to carry over in the form of a save transfer. It it could be done with MGS GZ on PS3 to MGSV on PS4 ffs, there’s no excuse. Balance the game accordingly for people who’ve played the original or haven’t. It’s not much different than how NG+ works.
Interestingly, for me, what I fell in love with was the unarmed/shield combat. I used that almost exclusively for the majority of the game. Because I found it way more fun, and often much faster, to stagger the enemy with punches/shield, and then get the grapple insta-kill animation. Plus it just felt more like Kratos to me, than the ax. The ax was fun, but I just didn't bond with it that much. ....damn, I might have to NG+ that sometime soon, and replay the fisticuffs of fury combat. That was seriously super fun.
Well, it's a tough hurdle when you are talking about video games. Because most players want to feel like they are progressing, and the easiest way to implement that, is with a leveling/power system. And if your guy is already filled to the gills with might and thunder, where do you go from there? It's the Power Creep dilemma in action. So, you depower him. I personally don't mind it that much. It's one of those computer game problems that I feel is more hassle to try and deal with, WITHOUT depowering the MC. I'm willing to just accept it as a necessary evil, instead of forcing a dev team to try and balance for all the crazy shit from the previous game(s), AND add new stuff as well with more power to it.
Plus I kind of want to see Kratos die, and instead go to Norse hell. Just to see his reaction. "....huh, well I guess some things are just universal when it comes to underworlds." *severed head on his ass* "Oh aye, screaming souls in torment, sharp pointy bits, nashing of teeth. It's a pretty standard setup Hel's got down here. Reminds me of me own people's tales about the under..." "shut up head..." "right...ok...shutting up now."