What are you currently playing?

[BrawlMan]

I think the only one of those I ever saw airing was The Tick, and I hated it as a kid. I haven't seen it since I was like, 6, though so maybe it's not bad.

The Tick is a fine show. I admit that I only watched the show here and there, but it never annoyed me, and I laughed whenever I caught an episode. You can watch episodes on YouTube or Watch Cartoon Online, if you wish. I do highly recommend the others; especially Freakazoid.

 

[BrawlMan]

I finished 3 other "quests" (basically in-game achievements) for Oneechanbara Origin. The Cool Finishers, CF Combo Master, and Parry Master. They unlocked the artwork I wanted. The last two I have done or barely done, are not worth the effort and unlock concept artwork I don't care for. Doing the final two quests will only accomplish me getting a trophy, but I don't find it worth doing. For right now, I am done with the game, but will occasionally play it kill some time or try crazy combos.

 

[BrawlMan]

I finally got back into Call of Juarez: Gunslinger. This is the best of the three games. You heard that right, there is no The Cartel. I couldn't really get into the other previous entries, but this is a nice, simple, and fun arcade Western FPS. I do wish that it had a traditional health system and not the old get behind cover to regenerate health. You can upgrade yourself to take more damage and such, but this is a game begging for a regular health meter. I know I didn't get too far when I first started, but I'm going to try and complete this. I'm currently on episode 3 right now.

This game is hilarious. It's funny when the main character constantly changes his story and with it, the stages completely change, and you have to adapt to the new situation.

 

[Dalisclock]

I finally got back into Call of Juarez: Gunslinger. This is the best of the three games. You heard that right, there is no The Cartel. I couldn't really get into the other previous entries, but this is a nice, simple, and fun arcade Western FPS. I do wish that it had a traditional health system and not the old get behind cover to regenerate health. You can upgrade yourself to take more damage and such, but this is a game begging for a regular health meter. I know I didn't get too far when I first started, but I'm going to try and complete this. I'm currently on episode 3 right now.

This game is hilarious. It's funny when the main character constantly changes his story and with it, the stages completely change, and you have to adapt to the new situation.

I have that game and I've heard it's good, I just need to actually install and try it out. It just always ends up losing out to another game I'm more interested in ATM.

Anyway, Reached the wall of holy prohibitions in Blasphemous, which(not surprisingly) is a hellhole prison that reminds me of the one in DS3(though without the terrifying jailors). I do appreciate how, like Jondo, unlocking the elevators is key to making the area easier to traverse, being linked by shafts. Also, getting a certain relic can turn fatal drops into drops into the lower areas instead(which can actually be more annoying in one case). It is kinda cool how technically you don't have to beat the baby, the dead bishop and whoever is at the Wall of Holy Prohibitions to get to those areas, ,but you need the masks you get after beating them to unlock the levels on the main elevator(which presumably goes to the top of the rooftop area). And I feel this game is pretty good at using level design and unlocking shortcuts to vastly shorten runs around the area because you don't have to take the long, difficult route again if you don't want to(most of the time). That and the use of the portals which makes it easier to restock and upgrade

I did manage to save Soccoro and that felt good considering the hell she was being put through(albeit of her own choice) and I saved(I think) Cleofas(he disappeared after giving him the cord from the church, so I assume he went back there). I also kinda like the encounter on the bridge to the wall(with that incredible though puzzling view of Cvstodia). It's not that hard but being backlit by the background and having the fight be in silhouette makes it look ominous.

 

[BrawlMan]

I have that game and I've heard it's good, I just need to actually install and try it out. It just always ends up losing out to another game I'm more interested in ATM.

You have it on PC? I'm playing the Switch version that came out in 2019.

 

[Dalisclock]

You have it on PC? I'm playing the Switch version that came out in 2019.

I do. Picked it up like 5 or so years ago. Honestly it's embarrassing how many games I have that I haven't played but can't even remember when I got them because I've had them so long. Fucking Steam/GOG sales.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

I do. Picked it up like 5 or so years ago. Honestly it's embarrassing how many games I have that I haven't played but can't even remember when I got them because I've had them so long. Fucking Steam/GOG sales.

Sounds like you’d do well to adopt a “No new games” stance next year. If it wasn’t for Elden Ring I’d probably continue mine for another year.

My goal is to first finish my trophy runs for MGSV (hopefully by this weekend) and Sekiro (by month’s end or early December), as well as the story modes of both Witcher 3 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance. I’m maybe half way through each of those. Then in between I’d like to also check off smaller games like Wolfenstein: TNO, The Evil Within and F.E.A.R. If I can do all that by February 25th I’ll be happy. Even so I won’t get Elden Ring until I knock those out first.

Speaking of, I was lucky enough to put maybe 6-7 hours into the network test, and have no idea how much I completed vs what was available, but I did at least reach the borders of the map boundaries, which were translucent walls put up for the time being. Never did beat the Tree Sentinel dude on horseback, Margit the Fell Omen at the castle gate, or the dragon, though I did get in a critical hit right before they shut it off. Most of the other bosses encountered were pretty manageable, especially with spirit summons. I played pretty much completely melee which made some areas tougher but can see how supplemental magic would be really helpful.

The steed (Torrent I guess is what it’s called now) felt really good to control. Like, smoother than the Horizon: ZD mounts and that’s surprising in a FROMSOFT game. It stops on a dime when letting off the stick even after sprinting, and launching off of jump pads is pretty awesome. The mounted combat works well but for melee it really depends on how much area your attacks cover as some enemies can be tougher to hit while moving. The twin blade usually worked better than a sword for example. Harvesting is also easily done on horseback, and being a “spirit” based ally means it’s quickly and easily summoned when on foot.

I could write more but kinda have to collect my thoughts when I have more time. All in all, this will certainly be the most customizable and build-friendly game FROM has made, but mileage may vary depending on how much patience people have for simply “more” of pretty much, well, everything to make the most of them.

 

[Dalisclock]

Sounds like you’d do well to adopt a “No new games” stance next year. If it wasn’t for Elden Ring I’d probably continue mine for another year.

I'm almost there already. I barely buy games anymore except when they're games I'm really really interested in. I plan to grab "Eastward" in the near future because it sounds/looks great, but I've barely bought any new games this year. Maybe tails of iron after new years when I'm ready to play another metriodvania with soulsy flair.

 

[laggyteabag]

I've been playing some Halo Infinite, seeing as the multiplayer just came out, and it plays so smoothly.

The gunplay, the mechanics - *chefs kiss*.

It feels like Halo again.

That said, im concerned about the longevity of the game. There are only 10 launch maps, across two game modes - 7 for 4v4, and 3 for 12v12. Its not a great showing. And without a Forge mode, we can't even rely on that.

Also, the levelling system is utterly glacial in its pace. I have been playing the game for a good 3-4 hours already, and I have only hit level 2 out of 100, in the Season 1 battlepass. Its hilariously slow. The only way of earning XP is by completing challenges, as there is currently no reward for completing/winning games.

Im also not a fan of the customisation. There is a lot of potential in all of the menus, but everything is either tied to the glacial progression system, or sold in the store, so currently everyone looks the exact same, just a different primary colour.

Gameplay wise, it is a fantastic step in the right direction, but the metagame definitely needs more work.

 

[Ezekiel]

Ridiculous.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

Seeing Dead Space on the front page made me decide to give it another run through. Amazingly enough, it just took a mouse acceleration fix to get it working perfectly at 1920x1080 120Hz with VSync.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Getting all the musical notes in The Messenger. I can't think of any other game that so drastically changes from one genre to another at the halfway point - goes from being an 8-bit action platformer in the vein of Ninja Gaiden to a 16-bit metroidvania. And while I think the first half is a fine game unto itself (if short on its own), the second half doesn't feel like a "complete" metroidvania. If anything it feels like a post-ending MV, with most of the map cleared, almost no new upgrades or bosses left (I've only fought one boss in all of the second half of the game so far, compared to the seven or so in the first part) and basically nothing left to do but sweep up any leftovers. Open the map, look for the square with a flashing line leading to a blank space, trek aaaaaaall the way over there, clean up any leftovers, repeat. There're maybe a couple of new areas to explore but it very much feels like the adventure's pretty much over by the halfway mark.

 

[BrawlMan]

Getting all the musical notes in The Messenger. I can't think of any other game that so drastically changes from one genre to another at the halfway point - goes from being an 8-bit action platformer in the vein of Ninja Gaiden to a 16-bit metroidvania. And while I think the first half is a fine game unto itself (if short on its own), the second half doesn't feel like a "complete" metroidvania. If anything it feels like a post-ending MV, with most of the map cleared, almost no new upgrades or bosses left (I've only fought one boss in all of the second half of the game so far, compared to the seven or so in the first part) and basically nothing left to do but sweep up any leftovers. Open the map, look for the square with a flashing line leading to a blank space, trek aaaaaaall the way over there, clean up any leftovers, repeat. There're maybe a couple of new areas to explore but it very much feels like the adventure's pretty much over by the halfway mark.

My thoughts of getting The Messenger was always on and off, and from what you described, I will pass on it.

CoJ: Gunslinger again. I am on Episode 6 and taking a break. I decided to try out the arcade mode, and it's fun too and pretty straightforward. No story and this mode is all about racking up those combo kills. They give you a lot of stages to work with, so arcade mode is not an after thought.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

Gonna be trying Halo Infinite multiplayer. Just started the download, will report back in about a week once I've given it some decent hands on.

Edit: First impression, it's pretty good. Movement and shooting feels nice and crisp. Jump is a little floaty, as Halo always is. Not sure I'm a big fan of a lot of the new weapons, but I probably just need to figure out how to use them optimally. Overall really favorable first impression...and I'm not just saying that because I top scored in 4 of the 5 matches I played. Ok that might have something to do with it.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

Closing in on Platinum for MGSV with 18 mission tasks to go. Just got the one from [Extreme] Cloaked in Silence for neutralizing Quiet with non-firearm attacks, and after several failed attempts the final one took just over a minute. I called in sleeping grenades on her initial spot, then switched to cloak and started running, which apparently distracts her enough to stay in place. Then she moved nearly right in front of where I was headed, towards the northeast corner of the starting position and all I had to do was CQC her for the final hit.

 

[Dalisclock]

Cleared the Wall of Holy Prohibitions in Blasphemous. Admittedly the human torch boss is the hardest one I've dealt with in a while, taking me 3 attempts to put down instead of the 1 or 2 I've needed for most of the bosses for quite a while, mostly because of his damn AOE attacks.Once I got the Inquisitor key from the merchant lady, I went back and opened all the gold locked doors to find...well, not much of value other then another bile flask. Also, those fucking screaming prisoners are annoying as shit. I also managed to get that one bead behind the gate that didn't even need the key but I didn't realize it was linked the damn elevator. Contained an anti-flame bead I really could have used before I fought flame boy. I do like how the overly Ornate elevator connects back to the convent for ease of getting back to the rest of the world(since getting around on the rooftops is kind of a chore).

I'm pretty sure I'm close to the end, since I now can unlock the top floor of the elevator on the rooftops which presumably will lead to that areas boss and from there I guess it's just up to whatever is above the rooftops. At some point in the next day or so I'll run around and collect all the shit I haven't been able to grab so far, and get any final upgrades. I've maxed fervor but not bile flasks, health or the mea culpa so I probably need like one or two more of each of those to reach max level(and I'll probably upgrade my flasks one more time). There's also some painting puzzles I need to find again and maybe they have something good behind them. One had 3 animal enemies, one had two candles and a third had 3 body parts mentioned.

Already contemplating what to play once I finish this, got it narrowed down to a few different games. Eastward is a high on my list, but I also want to go back and play Hyper Light Drifter to completion(I'm pretty sure I need to just start over at this point because I last played it over a year ago).

Though I'm intrigued by this game, both because it's free and it's apparently like 4 hours long. Also the art style and atmosphere appeal to me.

 

[BrawlMan]

Then in between I’d like to also check off smaller games like Wolfenstein: TNO, The Evil Within and F.E.A.R.

Do FEAR first, then Evil Within. We'll talk when you make it to EW.

 

[XsjadoBlayde]

The Eternal Cylinder
Latest by Ace Team, who have a history of visually quirky games. Is about a vast planet-wide crushing cylinder annihilating everything in it's path as it sporadically stops and starts like an overweight chain-smoking copper trying to catch their breath as a teenage thief dances mockingly out of reach. And that thief is a weird little blob called a *checks notes" ...Treb..hum? With two dippy legs and an elephant snout, snorting up resources and mutations while a twee British grandad narrates your life or death struggle as if they're a knock-off David Attenborough, it's charming and cute enough so far. At first glance, it seems to be setup for a roguelike style gameplay loop, but apparently is not the case and is an actual crafted videogame with an honest-to-moloch forward-marching story. So far is interesting and more cohesive in design than the devs previous games. Also affordable at 15 pounds.

Only issue is seemingly no vibration on the controller so far, which feels a little jarring after the last 20 games or so pleasuring my paws with a variety of vibrations as eclectic as a space-nymph's brand new techno dildo. Not a deal breaker, the rest is enough, and perhaps an appreciated break after the last Ghostrunner level started to get quite distracting with their fancy attempt at imitating the environmental machinery through the rumble which caused a bit of a fuzzy numbness to contend with.

Emergency compliment sandwich moment: the music is one of those rarely produced examples of picking the right sounds and melodies to merge harmoniously with the universe while remaining distinct from other soundtracks. Am a sucka for a Eurhythmically-produced soundtrack.

 

[Dalisclock]

Cleared the ArchCathedral Rooftops in Blasphemous and defeated Crisanta. She's an interesting boss and I blundered into her the first time so I wasn't ready. Normally the boss rooms are pretty well telegraphed in this game due to having a bonfire like right in front of them but here that wasn't the case. Instead I went and got some more upgrades(the last health upgrade to max it out and the Mea Culpa altar on the rooftops) which made the fight a tad easier then next go round. I also realized she's apparently blind, which doesn't seem to affect her ability to kick ass one bit. Also, in the prequel comic(which I payed like $2 for on sale), she wipes the floor with the main character, so this is basically payback.

I do kind of like how they set up the path to the mea culpa on the rooftops where you have to work from the bottom up to open the gates above you to finally reach the alter, so add this to the impressive level design in play. I also got the bonfire warping unlocked and have started cleaning up all the side quests I haven't finished. As far as I know, the only one I have left is the one where you have to kill the 3 specific enemies and then go to the room with the paintings but you can't use the warp or die in the process, so you have to strategically plan a route to minimize your chance of dying before you open the gate in that room. Which doesn't look too hard but the whole thing looks like it will take about 20 or so minutes with all the elevators and shortcuts unlocked.

But yeah, I think I'm almost done assuming I don't want to do the bonus content(such as the bloodstained DLC stuff or the NG+ stuff). As far as I know there's one boss left to get one of the endings and then some extra stuff to get the other ending. But at least I've cleared the path to go challenge the final boss when I'm ready. I also found an arcade machine in a secret room which basically allows me to play an 8-bit take on the same game I'm playing now but more like classic castlevania(and just as unforgiving). It's kinda cool but each attempt costs 2500 which is still a decent chunk of change for a single credit in a mini-game and I still need to buy mea culpa upgrades(I don't have many left but they're pricey). It would be nice if it become a menu option or something in a future update once the machine is located or in NG+, because I kinda enjoyed played it. It's like feeding $20 into a real arcade machine aka not really worth it unless you have nothing else to spend money on(and considering you can just dump money into the Alberdo church to get QoL upgrades and make the church prettier and more lively, there's a far better money sink).

 

[Bartholen]

God of War 3 for the nth time, still one of my favorite games ever.

Having played this game many, many times before (I can finish it in like 5-7 hours on Hard mode, so it only ever takes a couple of days), it does feel weirdly short towards the end. I wouldn't say rushed, because there's no feeling of anything having been cut, or areas where it feels like the devs were half assing it. But after the Cronos boss fight the game suddenly just starts giving experience and stat upgrades out like candy, because at that point there's only about a third of the game left. Some part of me is left feeling that maybe there were plans for another 1 or 2 hours of content, but those got removed somewhere in development.

One downside to playing the original PS3 version (where it still looks like it's a console generation ahead of its time) is that sometimes there is some serious texture loading lag. It's no exaggeration that I waited for the textures on Hephaestus to load in for literally minutes, because otherwise they were about 144p. This problem even extends to some cutscenes: Daedalus is only ever seen in closeup in one cutscene, which can begin before his textures have properly loaded in, meaning that most of the graphical effort is just wasted, because after that one cutscene you basically never see him again. It feels weird because otherwise the game looks absolutely goddamn stunning over a decade later, and there's hardly ever any texture pop-in or other graphics problems.

I still maintain that this game's story and ending are misunderstood and underappreciated, but will admit that they are rather muddled. The writing seems to go in two different directions at once. Fortunately that element is gone by the ending, which I think is brilliant.

Holds up like a fine wine.